Identification of the Contamination Sources by PCBs Using Multivariate Analyses: The Case Study of the Annaba Bay (Algeria) Basin
Soumeya Khaled-Khodja,
Hassen Cheraitia,
Karima Rouibah,
Hana Ferkous,
Gaël Durand,
Semia Cherif,
Gamal A. El-Hiti,
Krishna Kumar Yadav,
Alessandro Erto,
Yacine Benguerba
Affiliations
Soumeya Khaled-Khodja
Physical Chemistry of Materials Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, Chadli Bendjedid University, BP 73, El Tarf 36000, Algeria
Hassen Cheraitia
Department of Mathematics, Faculty of exact sciences, Jijel University, BP 98, Ouled Aissa, Jijel 18000, Algeria
Karima Rouibah
Laboratory of Materials: Elaborations-Properties-Applications LMEPA, Jijel University, BP 98, Ouled Aissa, Jijel 18000, Algeria
Hana Ferkous
Département de Chimie, Faculté des Sciences, Université de 20 Août 1955 de Skikda, Skikda 21000, Algeria
Gaël Durand
Public Laboratory Expertise and Analysis Consulting in Bretagne, C.S. 10052, 29280 Plouzané, France
Semia Cherif
Materials and Environment Research Laboratory for Sustainable Development LR18ES10, ISSBAT, Tunis University El Manar, Tunis 1006, Tunisia
Gamal A. El-Hiti
Department of Optometry, College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh 11433, Saudi Arabia
Krishna Kumar Yadav
Faculty of Science and Technology, Madhyanchal Professional University, Ratibad, Bhopal 462044, India
Alessandro Erto
Dipartimento di Ingegneria Chimica, dei Materiali e della Produzione Industriale, Università Di Napoli Federico II, 80125 Napoli, Italy
Yacine Benguerba
Laboratoire de Biopharmacie et Pharmaco Technie (LBPT), Department of Process Engineering, Faculty of Technology, Ferhat ABBAS Setif-1 University, Setif 19000, Algeria
Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), particularly the indicator polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), were first quantified in water and sediments of two wadis, Boujemaâ and Seybouse, as well as in the effluents from a fertilizer and phytosanitary production industrial plant (Fertial). Since these contaminated discharges end in Annaba Bay (Algeria) in the Mediterranean Sea, with a significant level of contamination, all the potential sources should be identified. In this work, this task is conducted by a multivariate analysis. Liquid–liquid extraction and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC–MS) methods were applied to quantify seven PCB congeners, usually taken as indicators of contamination. The sum of the PCB concentrations in the sediments ranged from 1 to 6.4 μg/kg dw (dry weight) and up to 0.027 μg/L in waters. Principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) were used for the multivariate analysis, indicating that the main sources of PCB emissions in the bay are urban/domestic and agricultural/industrial. The outfalls that mostly contribute to the pollution of the gulf are the Boujemaâ wadi, followed by the Seybouse wadi, and finally by the Fertial cluster and more precisely the annex basin of the plant. Although referring to a specific site of local importance, the work aims to present a procedure and a methodological analysis that can be potentially applicable to further case studies all over the world.
