COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBON (PAH) DISTRIBUTIONS IN SOME COMMONLY CONSUMED FOODS IN PORT HARCOURT (NIGERIA), PREPARED BY DIFFERENT METHODS

Science Chemistry

The distribution and concentrations of 16 priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in grilled (GR) and roasted (RO) fish (FH), meat (MT), plantain (PN) and yam (YM), commonly consumed in Port Harcourt (Nigeria), were evaluated. Gas chromatography analyses detected PAHs in the grilled (13-16) and roasted (11-14) food samples with the total concentration in each food sample higher for the roasted than grilled. Nine PAHs were detected in all the food samples: anthracene (3 ring), fluoranthene, pyrene, benzo(a)anthracene, chrysene, benzo(k)fluoranthene, indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene, and benzo(g,h,i)perylene (4-6 ring). Total concentrations of the 4-6 ring high molecular weight (HMW) PAHs were more in the grilled food samples (28.88, 14.88, 32.84 and 21.56) and significantly more in the roasted food samples (54.87, 42.88, 34.85 and 78.86) than the 2-3 ring low molecular weight (LMW), which were generally minor constituents or absent, respectively. Fluoranthene and pyrene were most prominent in all the food samples with concentrations from 7.89 to 37.00 g/kg and 3.04 to 13.53 g/kg in the grilled, and 17.84 to 113.58 g/kg and 8.93 to 23.23 g/kg in the roasted, respectively. Ratio of fluoranthene and pyrene (Fth/Pyr) commonly employed as diagnostic of PAH formation processes range from 2.04 to 2.73 for the grilled and 2.00 to 4.89 for the roasted food samples. These results indicate that grilling and roasting of fish, meat, plantain and yam generated and incorporated PAHs, with comparable distributions and varying concentrations, into the food samples which are commonly consumed in Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

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