Lichens are useful biomonitors for semi-volatile organic air pollutants, particularly polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), as a result of their ability to respond to air pollutants at different levels, their slow growth rate, longevity and their ability to indicate the presence and concentrations of these pollutants. Consequently there has been a recent global trend in environmental analytical research to utilize lichens in this manner, where Soxhlet and ultrasonic assisted extraction are the most common analyte extraction techniques. A wide range of total PAH concentrations have been determined in lichens from different environments, although phenanthrene, fluoranthene, naphthalene and pyrene tend to dominate the PAH profiles, with higher 2-and 3-ring PAH concentrations than 6-ring compound concentrations. In order to facilitate inter-study comparisons, the development of a reproducible, sensitive analytical method for organic pollutants in lichens is needed.
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