The concentrations, composition patterns, transport and fate of PAHs in semi-arid and arid soils such as in Central Asia are not well known. Such knowledge is required to manage the risk posed by these toxic chemicals to humans and ecosystems in these regions. To fill this knowledge gap, we determined the concentrations of 21 parent PAHs, 4,5-methylenephenanthrene, 6 alkylated PAHs, and biphenyl in soils from 11 sampling locations (0–10, 10–20 cm soil depths) along a 20-km transect downwind from the Almalyk metal mining and metallurgical industrial complex (Almalyk MMC), Uzbekistan. The concentrations of Σ29 PAHs and Σ16 US-EPA PAHs were 41–2670 ng g⁻¹ and 29–1940 ng g⁻¹, respectively. The highest concentration of Σ29 PAHs occurred in the immediate vicinity of the copper smelting factory of the Almalyk MMC. The concentrations in topsoil decreased substantially to a value of ≤ 200 ng g⁻¹ (considered as background concentration) at ≥ 2 km away from the factory. Low molecular weight PAHs dominated the PAH mixtures at less contaminated sites and high molecular weight PAHs at the most contaminated site. The concentration of Σ16 US-EPA PAHs did not exceed the precautionary values set by the soil quality guidelines of, e.g., Switzerland and Germany. Similarly, the benzo[a]pyrene equivalent concentration in soils near the Almalyk MMC did not exceed the value set by the Canadian guidelines for the protection of humans from carcinogenic PAHs in soils. Consequently, the cancer risk due to exposure to PAHs in these soils can be considered as low.

PAHs 在中亚等半干旱和干旱土壤中的浓度、组成模式、迁移和归宿尚不清楚。需要这些知识来管理这些有毒化学品对这些地区的人类和生态系统构成的风险。为了填补这一知识空白，我们在 20 公里的 11 个采样点（0-10、10-20 厘米土壤深度）的土壤中测定了 21 种母体 PAH、4,5-亚甲基菲、6 种烷基化 PAH 和联苯的浓度。从乌兹别克斯坦的 Almalyk 金属采矿和冶金工业综合体 (Almalyk MMC) 的下风向横断面。Σ29 PAHs 和 Σ16 US-EPA PAHs 的浓度分别为 41–2670 ng g ^-1和 29–1940 ng g ^-1， 分别。Σ29 PAHs 的最高浓度发生在 Almalyk MMC 的铜冶炼厂附近。在距工厂≥ 2 km 处，表层土壤中的浓度大幅下降至≤ 200 ng g ^-1（视为背景浓度）。低分子量多环芳烃在污染较少的地点以多环芳烃混合物为主，而在污染最严重的地点则以高分子量的多环芳烃为主。Σ16 US-EPA PAHs 的浓度没有超过瑞士和德国等土壤质量指南设定的预防值。同样，苯并[ a] Almalyk MMC 附近土壤中的芘当量浓度未超过加拿大关于保护人类免受土壤中致癌 PAHs 危害的指南设定的值。因此，由于接触这些土壤中的多环芳烃而导致的癌症风险可以被认为是低的。