Greener extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from soil and sediment using eucalyptus oil

Abstract Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are toxic pollutants which persist in the environment. Extraction of polycyclic requires large volumes organic solvents, but use non-hazardous solvents provides a potentially cleaner approach to quantifying environmental matrices. Here we investigated efficiency eucalyptus oil extract from spiked soil and sediment. Eucalyptus extraction conditions including temperature, time, volume were optimized employing Box–Behnken experimental design, desorption kinetics phenanthrene, pyrene, chrysene, benzo[a]pyrene evaluated using an empirical first order kinetic model. Results show that soil, 112% for 108% 102% chrysene 98% benzo[a]pyrene, is higher than sediment, 90, 111, 84 82%, respectively. This may be due possessing 12 times more carbon. Recoveries 77% obtained over concentration range 0.5–10 mg/kg tested hydrocarbons, with limits detection lower 63 µg/kg quantitation 125 µg/kg. These findings suggest has potential as safer solvent hydrophobic contaminants.