Atmospheric concentrations of PCDD/Fs, dl-PCBs and some pesticides in northern Algeria using passive air sampling Yacine Moussaoui a , Ludovic Tuduri b , Yacine Kerchich c , B.Y. Meklati a , Gauthier Eppe d,⇑ a Centre de Recherche Scientifique et Technique en Analyses Physico-Chimiques (C.R.A.P.C), BP 248, Alger RP 16004, Algeria b LPTC-Environnements et Paléoenvironnements Océaniques et Continentaux (EPOC – UMR 5805 CNRS) 351 cours de la libération, Université Bordeaux I, 33405 Talence, France c Ecole Nationale Polytechnique, BP 182, El Harrach, 16200 Algiers, Algeria d CART, Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, Inorganic Analytical Chemistry, Chemistry Department, University of Liège, Allée de la Chimie 3, B-6c Sart-Tilman, B-4000 Liège, Belgium article info Article history: Received 19 April 2011 Received in revised form 16 December 2011 Accepted 4 February 2012 Available online 3 March 2012 Keywords: PCDDs PCDFs dl-PCBs Pesticides Passive sampling Algeria abstract Two monitoring campaigns were conducted in northern Algeria to assess the contamination level of pes- ticides and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in ambient air. Six pesticides (a- and c-hexachlorocyclo- hexane, fenitrothion, malathion, chlorpyrifos and k-cyhalothrin) were monitored at two different sampling locations during the first campaign. The passive sampling was performed at a semi urban/ industrial site but also in a rural area between July to September 2008. The pesticides levels, analyzed by GC/MS/MS, ranged from 16 pg m 3 to 11 ng m 3 . The second campaign was carried out from May to November 2009. The polychlorodibenzo-p-dioxins, dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and dioxin-like polychlo- rinated biphenyls (dl-PCBs) concentrations were evaluated at an urban/industrial and at an industrial site. The PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs, analyzed by HRGC/HRMS, ranged from 249 to 923 fg TEQ m 3 . In addition to passive sampling, active sampling using an isokinetic sampler was also performed at an industrial waste incinerator. The PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs found was 268 pg TEQ m 3 . This paper presents the first measurements of PCDD/Fs, dl-PCBs and pesticides in rural, urban and industrial areas of northern Algeria. Ó 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) are ubiquitous environmental contaminants. They have received interest as a result of their toxicity and persis- tence properties in environmental media. PCDD/Fs emitted from combustion (natural processes or anthropogenic activities) or re-emitted from reservoirs (water, soils, and sediments), are trans- ported to distant locations through atmospheric or aquatic path- ways. PCDD/Fs bioaccumulate through the food web, and pose a risk of causing adverse effects to human health. Food consumption is the most predominant route for human exposure to these contam- inants. To a certain extent, they are also present in indoor environ- ments (Loos et al., 1997; Wang et al., 2003; Weschler and Nazaroff, 2008). Particular attention has also been focused on polychlorinated biphenyls compounds (PCB) and, especially, the ones that exhibit a ‘dioxin-like toxicity’. The twelve dioxin-like PCBs (dl-PCBs) and the seventeen 2,3,7,8-PCDD/Fs are characterized by their ability to bind to the aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase (AhR) receptor (Safe, 1986). The complex nature of PCDD/F and PCB mixtures complicates the risk evaluation for humans. For this purpose, the concept of toxic equivalent factors (TEFs) has been developed and introduced to facilitate risk assessment and regulatory control of exposure to these mixtures (Safe, 1990). The congener 2,3,7,8-tetrachlo- rodibenzo-p-dioxins (2,3,7,8-TCDD) is the most toxic congener and is given a TEF of one. Other congeners are given TEFs that are fractions of one, reflecting a pronounced variability in toxicity. TEFs are reassessed frequently as knowledge progresses (van den Berg et al., 1998, 2006). The total 2,3,7,8-TCDD toxic equivalent concentration (TEQ) characterizing the dioxin-like toxicity of a sample is obtained using the TEQ formula as reported in the literature (van den Berg et al., 1998). A series of relevant pesticides are also monitored in this study. Malathion, fenitrothion and chlorpyrifos are organophosphorus pesticides. They are intensively used in the agricultural production system in Algeria. k-cyhalothrin, a pyrethroid, is also used as an insecticide in urban Algerian areas. Finally, the banned hexachloro- cyclohexane (HCH) pesticide (including a and c-HCH isomers) is also important to monitor based on its intensive usage in the past. As reported in the literature, the POPs and pesticides sampling can be performed by using either active (using high or low volume sampling) or passive sampling (Gorecki and Namiesnik, 2002; Tuduri et al., 2006). High-volume sampling, as a conventional 0045-6535/$ - see front matter Ó 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2012.02.025 ⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +32 (0)43663422; fax: +32 (0)43664387. E-mail address: g.eppe@ulg.ac.be (G. Eppe). Chemosphere 88 (2012) 270–277 Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect Chemosphere journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/chemosphere