ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Mar. Sci.
Sec. Coastal Ocean Processes
PAHs in Subtropical Estuarine Sediments of Western Beibu Gulf, China: Distribution, Source Apportionment, and Ecological Risk Assessment
Provisionally accepted
- 1Guangzhou College of Technology and Business, Guangzhou, China
- 2Marine Bioresource and Environment Research Center, Key Laboratory of Marine Eco-Environmental Science and Technology, the First Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources,, Qingdao, China
- 3Guangzhou College of Technology and Business, Foshan, China
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This study systematically investigates the distribution, source apportionment, and ecological risks of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in surface sediments of the western Beibu Gulf, Guangxi. The total PAH concentrations range from 27.65 to 94.96 ng·g⁻¹, with an average of 61.67 ng·g⁻¹, which indicates low-to-moderate pollution. Spatial variations are significant, influenced by riverine inputs and coastal development intensity, with 3-ring (60.35%) and 4-ring (17.84%) compounds dominating. Diagnostic ratio analysis and principal component analysis (PCA) reveal that PAHs primarily originate from coal and biomass combustion, with local petroleum contributions. Risk assessments show that all PAH concentrations are below the Effect Range Low (ERL) of sediment quality guidelines. The toxic equivalent quotient (TEQBaP) averages 0.991 ng·g⁻¹, and RQΣPAHs indicates low ecological risk, though potential accumulation of high-ring PAHs in industrial estuaries requires attention. These findings provide a scientific basis for PAH pollution control and sustainable marine management in the Beibu Gulf.
Keywords: Western Beibu Gulf, Surface sediments, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), SOURCE APPORTIONMENT, ecological risk assessment
Received: 07 Sep 2025; Accepted: 03 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Cui, Xu, Hou and Xu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Zhenzhen Hou, houzhenzhen@gzgs.edu.cn
Haiping Xu, xuhaiping@gzgs.edu.cn
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