Multimedia Distribution and Transfer of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFASs) Surrounding Two Fluorochemical Manufacturing Facilities in Fuxin, China

Industrial facilities can be point sources of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) emission to the surrounding environment. In this study, 25 neutral and ionizable PFASs were analyzed in 94 multimedia samples including air, rain, outdoor settled dust, soil, plant leaves, river water, surface sediment, and shallow groundwater from two fluorochemical manufacturing parks (FMPs) in Fuxin, China, to elucidate the multimedia distribution and transfer pattern of PFASs from a point source. The concentrations of individual PFASs in air, outdoor settled dust, and surface river water decreased exponentially as the distance increases from the FMPs, whereas the concentrations of short-chain (C2-C4) perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) remained high (3000 ng/L) in the surface water 38 km away. At FMPs, air concentrations of fluorotelomer alcohols and iodides were found dominant with levels of up to 7900 pg/m³ and 920 pg/m³, respectively. Trifluoroacetic acid was directly released from FMPs and occurred in all the environmental matrices at levels 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than other PFCAs. Higher air-water concentration ratios of short-chain PFCAs (C2-C4) suggested their transfer tendency from air to water. Both short-chain (C2) and long-chain (>C6) PFCAs have greater sediment-water distribution coefficients and deposit dust-air coefficients, which have great influences on the long-range transport potential of different analogues.