UHPLC ANALYSIS OF POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS (PAH) COMPOUNDS FROM THE SOIL BY QuEChERS AOAC METHOD FROM MANESAR INDUSTRIAL AREA, HARYANA, INDIA

Abstract

An Ultra-High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (UHPLC) method was developed and validated as per ICH guidelines for the analysis of 16 PAH compounds as per USEPA and various soil samples were analyzed in Manesar located 60 km away from Delhi, capital of India 28.3542° N, 76.9400° E in different seasons. The sampling was done in the industrial areas, agricultural fields, and residential plots all within 10 km radius of the industrial area. In the present study, the QuEChERS method was used for sample preparation, which has shown good recoveries around 80 to 120% The extraction time was only 10 minutes, followed by the UHPLC technique of run time of just 16 minutes. Average PAH concentration in Manesar soil was found highest in the winter session of industrial areas.  ∑16 PAH was 141 ppb in the industrial area in winter, 64 ppb in agricultural fields, and 54.7 ppb in residential plots. The lowest PAH levels were observed in the monsoon season. These values are very less if compared to Brazil, UK, Germany, and Korea.