Distribution and Depositional History of Aliphatic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in River Sediments from Sarawak River, Kuching, Sarawak

Widespread of petroleum hydrocarbon such as aliphatic hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) will have harmful effects on ecosystem. However, information regarding environmental status of Sarawak River has been rare. Thus, this study was carried out to determine the spatial and ve...

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Main Author:	Ngu, Peggy Zhen Zhen
Format:	Thesis
Language:	English
Published:	2016
Subjects:	GE Environmental Sciences
Online Access:	http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/26801/1/Peggy%20Ngu%20Zhen%20Zhen%20ft.pdf
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id	my-unimas-ir.26801
record_format	uketd_dc
spelling	my-unimas-ir.268012023-05-19T08:36:16Z Distribution and Depositional History of Aliphatic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in River Sediments from Sarawak River, Kuching, Sarawak 2016 Ngu, Peggy Zhen Zhen GE Environmental Sciences Widespread of petroleum hydrocarbon such as aliphatic hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) will have harmful effects on ecosystem. However, information regarding environmental status of Sarawak River has been rare. Thus, this study was carried out to determine the spatial and vertical distribution of aliphatic and PAHs as well as to reconstruct the depositional history of these hydrocarbons in sediments. Eight surface sediment samples and five core sediment samples were collected along Sarawak River. The sediment samples were Soxhlet extracted by using dichloromethane and fractionated into aliphatic hydrocarbons (F1), PAHs (F2) and polar compounds (F3) on silica gel column chromatography. Both F1 and F2 fractions were analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Flame Ionization Detector (GC-FID), while F3 was analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer (GC-MS). This study has discovered that the n-alkanes in estuary areas (SR1 and SR2) are contributed by biogenic inputs but other stations especially SR4 and SR5 are predominantly polluted by anthropogenic influence. PAHs in sediments samples were dominated by the high molecular weight PAHs (4 to 6 rings). PAHs in core sediments are characterized by a major pyrolytic influence and minor petrogenic contamination and will occasionally pose biological impairment. The presence of oil in surface sediment of Sarawak River is confirmed by the identification of the hopane and steranes series. In conclusion, Sarawak River showed low to high level of petroleum contamination. Carbon dating analysis of sediments, quantitative analysis on hydrocarbons biomarkers and derivatization on polar fractions should be carried out in order to improve current study. Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) 2016 Thesis http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/26801/ http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/26801/1/Peggy%20Ngu%20Zhen%20Zhen%20ft.pdf text en validuser masters Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) Faculty of Resource Science and Technology
institution	Universiti Malaysia Sarawak
collection	UNIMAS Institutional Repository
language	English
topic	GE Environmental Sciences
spellingShingle	GE Environmental Sciences Ngu, Peggy Zhen Zhen Distribution and Depositional History of Aliphatic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in River Sediments from Sarawak River, Kuching, Sarawak
description	Widespread of petroleum hydrocarbon such as aliphatic hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) will have harmful effects on ecosystem. However, information regarding environmental status of Sarawak River has been rare. Thus, this study was carried out to determine the spatial and vertical distribution of aliphatic and PAHs as well as to reconstruct the depositional history of these hydrocarbons in sediments. Eight surface sediment samples and five core sediment samples were collected along Sarawak River. The sediment samples were Soxhlet extracted by using dichloromethane and fractionated into aliphatic hydrocarbons (F1), PAHs (F2) and polar compounds (F3) on silica gel column chromatography. Both F1 and F2 fractions were analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Flame Ionization Detector (GC-FID), while F3 was analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometer (GC-MS). This study has discovered that the n-alkanes in estuary areas (SR1 and SR2) are contributed by biogenic inputs but other stations especially SR4 and SR5 are predominantly polluted by anthropogenic influence. PAHs in sediments samples were dominated by the high molecular weight PAHs (4 to 6 rings). PAHs in core sediments are characterized by a major pyrolytic influence and minor petrogenic contamination and will occasionally pose biological impairment. The presence of oil in surface sediment of Sarawak River is confirmed by the identification of the hopane and steranes series. In conclusion, Sarawak River showed low to high level of petroleum contamination. Carbon dating analysis of sediments, quantitative analysis on hydrocarbons biomarkers and derivatization on polar fractions should be carried out in order to improve current study.
format	Thesis
qualification_level	Master's degree
author	Ngu, Peggy Zhen Zhen
author_facet	Ngu, Peggy Zhen Zhen
author_sort	Ngu, Peggy Zhen Zhen
title	Distribution and Depositional History of Aliphatic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in River Sediments from Sarawak River, Kuching, Sarawak
title_short	Distribution and Depositional History of Aliphatic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in River Sediments from Sarawak River, Kuching, Sarawak
title_full	Distribution and Depositional History of Aliphatic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in River Sediments from Sarawak River, Kuching, Sarawak
title_fullStr	Distribution and Depositional History of Aliphatic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in River Sediments from Sarawak River, Kuching, Sarawak
title_full_unstemmed	Distribution and Depositional History of Aliphatic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in River Sediments from Sarawak River, Kuching, Sarawak
title_sort	distribution and depositional history of aliphatic and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in river sediments from sarawak river, kuching, sarawak
granting_institution	Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS)
granting_department	Faculty of Resource Science and Technology
publishDate	2016
url	http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/26801/1/Peggy%20Ngu%20Zhen%20Zhen%20ft.pdf
_version_	1783728327813496832

Distribution and Depositional History of Aliphatic and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in River Sediments from Sarawak River, Kuching, Sarawak

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