Polynuclear Aromatic Hydrocarbons Webinar - Video

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are contaminants of concern that are widespread, found in petroleum crude, many commercial products and are generated as a byproduct of combustion. They also represent one of the earliest classes of chemicals suspected of causing cancer in humans, with this suspicion being largely confirmed during the 20th century. Although PAHs are routinely tested for in environmental investigations, this group of parameters is often not well understood in terms of chemistry, environmental fate and transport, or sources. This webinar provides an overview of chemical properties and forensic identification of source type (pyrogenic, petrogenic, biogenic) for PAHs.

Given the pervasiveness of PAHs, the webinar also provides a brief history of PAH prevalence in various products such as diesel, asphalt and creosote and how these compounds are produced as a result of incomplete combustion. A major emphasis of this TechTalk is the use of diagnostic ratios and principal component analysis as part of forensic investigations to help identify the origin of PAHs (ie. urban runoff vs a petroleum hydrocarbon product). The webinar expands on the use of alkylated PAHs as a forensic tool and the current regulatory status across Canada.