Abstract
Vegetables are an important part of a healthy diet because of their nutritional value. Contamination in vegetable may prove
hazardous for population. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are compounds widespread in the environment, many of
them showing carcinogenic effects. These compounds can reach the food chain by different ways and, therefore, the analysis of
PAHs in food is a matter of concern.
The present work provides data regarding levels of PAHs: acenaphthene (Ace), acenaphthylene (Acy), fluorene (F), naphthalene
(Np), anthracene (An), fluoranthene (Fl), phenanthrene (Ph), benzo[α]anthracene (B[α]An), benzo[k]fluoranthene (B[k]Fl),
chrysene (Chry), pyrene (Py), benzo[ghi]perylene (B[ghi]Pe), benzo[α]pyrene (B[α]Py), dibenzo[α,h]anthracene dB[α,h]An,
indeno[1,2,3–cd]pyrene (I[1,2,3–cd]Py) in different vegetables (potato, celery, dill, parsley, carrot, cucumber, onion, garlic,
cabbage, spinach). Bulb, stem, leaves and fruit were taking into account. Samples were collected from rural and urban areas from
Romania, belonging to Dobrogea region.
The RSD values were less than 4.7%, indicating that the GC-MS method is precise. The calculated R2 values were above 0.998,
indicating the linear relationship between targeted spiking levels and mean introduced concentrations, within the working range
of concentrations. LOD and LOQ values were determined using calibration standards.
An analytical procedure was used, based on extraction and clean-up step, followed by the injection of concentrated extracts in gas
chromatograph Hewlett- Packard 5890. A look at total PAH contents reveals that leafy vegetables showed higher values while
chrysene was below the limit of quantification for most studied samples. Sample location appears to be one important factor
affecting vegetables PAH contents. The obtained results show that PAHs were detected at higher concentrations in urban areas
than in rural areas.