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Review
. 2023 Dec 20;29(1):36.
doi: 10.3390/molecules29010036.

A Review of Distribution and Profiles of HBCD in Different Environmental Media of China

Jinglin Deng  1   2 , Wenbin Liu  2   3 , Lirong Gao  1   2   3 , Tianqi Jia  1   2 , Yunchen He  1   2 , Tianao Mao  2 , Javid Hussain  2   4
Affiliations
Review

A Review of Distribution and Profiles of HBCD in Different Environmental Media of China

Jinglin Deng et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) is the most important flame retardant that has been used in Expanded Polystyrene foam and Extruded Polystyrene foam in the past forty years across the world. China was the major producer and user of HBCD, and the total HBCD production was about 0.3 million tons. Although HBCD was completely banned in China in 2021 because of its long-range transport, bioaccumulation and toxicity, there is still a lot of residue in the environment. Therefore, we reviewed multiple studies concerning the distribution of HBCD in diverse environmental matrices, such as in the air, dust, soil, water, sediment, and biota. Results revealed that HBCD levels in different environments in China present geographical variation and were at a high level compared with other countries. In all environmental media, relatively high HBCD concentrations have been found in industrial and urban areas. Industrialization and urbanization are two important factors that influence the concentration and distribution of HBCD in the environment. In terms of isomer, γ-HBCD was the dominant isomer in soil, water, and sediment, while in the biota α-HBCD was the predominant isomer.

Keywords: HBCD; environmental media; occurrence and distribution.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Distribution of HBCD concentration in soil in China.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Different sources of HBCD in the surface soil.
Figure 3
Figure 3
HBCD stereoisomer in soil in China (ASERS: areas surrounding the e-waste-recycling sites; EWRS: e-waste-recycling sites).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Concentration of HBCD (a) and corresponding isomers (b) in sludge from sewage-treatment plants in Shanghai.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Geographical distribution and level of HBCD in sediments from several river drainage basins in China (blue lines indicate seven rivers, and red lines indicate four tributaries).
Figure 6
Figure 6
(a) Geographical distribution of HBCD in various types of aquatic biota in Guangdong Province and (b) concentration of HBCD in consumer fish in nine coastal cities (The color depth in the figure represents the concentration of HBCD in consumer fish).
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