Traditionally, laboratory tests of the toxicity of petroleum to aquatic animals have been conducted without exposure to ultraviolet light (UV). Test results from these studies may substantially under estimate th toxicity of petroleum in the presence of natural sunlight becase of potential photoenhanced toxicity in the presence of UV. Despite numerous' single chemical' studies demonstrating that the toxicity of specific polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in petrolem (e.g., flouranthene) increases 10 to 1000 fold in the presence of UV, there has only been limited evluation of the toxicity of petroleum under environmentally realistic light regimes.
展开▼
