Utility of normalizing Tenax extractable concentrations for phase volume in application as an environmental screening tool

• Published in: Chemosphere (Oxford) 2020-12, Vol.261, p.127811-127811, Article 127811
• Main Authors: Nutile, Samuel A., Harwood, Amanda D., Sinche, Federico L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bioaccessibility; Bioaccumulation; Organic carbon; Risk assessment; Tenax
• ISSN: 0045-6535; 1879-1298
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.127811

Bioaccessibility-based extraction tools, such as single-point Tenax extractions (SPTEs), provide cost-effective and accurate estimates of bioaccumulation and toxicity of hydrophobic organic contaminants during environmental sampling. Use of SPTEs as a screening tool in risk assessment is hindered by the requirement for normalization of extractable concentrations for organic carbon (OC). Normalizing SPTE concentrations for the volume of Tenax used during the extraction could improve the applicability of this methodology by removing the system dependence when applying SPTE concentrations to estimates of bioaccumulation. The objective of this study was to examine the utility of Tenax phase volume normalization in place of OC normalization when using SPTEs to estimate bioaccumulation. No significant differences were observed between the slope of regression lines generated between SPTE concentrations normalized for either Tenax phase volume or OC (p = 0.410), but slight improvement of the regression was noted when using phase volume normalization (R2 = 0.829) compared to OC normalization (R2 = 0.740). Replacing OC normalization with phase volume normalization in use of SPTEs more accurately represents the partition of the chemical to the Tenax during the SPTE, improves estimates of bioaccumulation, and expands the use of SPTEs as a rapid assessment tool for determining bioaccumulation during screening of contaminated environments. •Single-point Tenax extractions provide rapid estimates of bioaccessibility.•Single-point Tenax extractions can be used to estimate bioaccumulation.•Organic carbon normalization of Tenax concentrations limits applicability.•Phase volume normalization improves bioaccumulation estimates.•Tenax extractions offer a powerful screening tool for environmental assessment.