Determination of PAHs Concentrations in Water Samples Exploited from Wells in Vicinity of Gas Stations in Hamedan, 2012

Background and PAHs are the most important pollutants of groundwater resources. Therefore, this study aimed at determining the PAHs concentrations in water samples exploited from wells near gas stations in Hamadan, Iran. We collected 52 water samples from 30 cm depth of the wells from 13 gas stations in winter and spring in 2012. The extraction and identification of hydrocarbons concentration were performed using liquid-liquid micro extraction and EPA-8270 reference standards, respectively. All statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS statistical package. The PAHs in winter and spring has been observed with acenaphthylene recording the highest concentration of 0.043±0.047 µg/L and 0.059±0.073 µg/L, respectively and naphthalene and fluoranthene with the least concentration of 0.194±0.041 µg/L and 4.29±6.96 µg/L, respectively. Also, the mean concentrations of evaluated hydrocarbons in specimens compared with permissible exposure limits proposed by WHO, EPA and Iranian National Standards Organization showed that the mean concentrations of naphthalene in all evaluated samples were significantly higher than EPA permissible exposure limits. The mean concentrations of naphthalene in some samples were higher than permissible limits, therefore, water exploitation from the wells near gas stations could result in many environmental and health problems. So, periodic monitoring of fuel tanks and groundwater resources near gas stations is recommended.