ABSTRACT
Organic pollutant fractions should be closely investigated because of their different ecological risks. In this study, we examined the distribution of organophosphate ester (OPE) fractions (labile, stable-adsorbed, and tight-adsorbed fractions) in sediments from Eastern China Marginal Seas (ECMSs) and assessed the influencing factor of the fractions. The mean values of total OPEs in ECMSs are 13.70 ± 6.16 µg L-1 in seawater and 32.04 ± 14.31 µg kg-1 in sediment. The results showed that OPE concentration decreased from the northern to the southern ECMSs, and tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate and tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate were the primary OPEs. The mean contents of labile, stable-adsorbed, and tight-adsorbed fractions in the ECMSs were 9.50, 11.29, and 11.71 µg kg-1, respectively. Labile OPEs were predominant in offshore waters; the percentage of stable- and tight-adsorbed fractions increased progressively with offshore distance in ECMSs. The specific surface area and surface functional groups of sediment were not consistent with the fraction concentrations from the correlation coefficient, but the gross domestic product per coastline agreed well with the fraction distribution. Based on this, we conclude that human activity, rather than physicochemical characteristics of sediments, may be the primary influencing factor of the relative distribution of different OPE concentration fractions in ECMSs.