Polychlorinated Biphenyls in Bituminous Materials

Abstract

A method developed for the extraction of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from bituminous materials and subsequent analysis using electroncapture gas chromatography is presented. The procedure is tested by spiking asphalt oil and pavement with Aroclor 1242 in the laboratory. Several asphalt cores and surface treatment seal‐coat samples are taken from highway locations suspected of PCB contamination from an asphalt oil supplier. PCB content in the asphalt cores vary from none detected to 8.18 mg/kg in the binder, and none detected to 286 (μg/kg in the whole pavement sample. Both Aroclor 1242 and 1260 are found in some of the pavement cores. Surface treatment seal coats contained higher levels of Aroclor 1242 than found in the pavement core samples. Several soil samples removed from under the pavement and in a drainage ditch near a highway contained low PCB levels, but the source(s) of PCBs in the soils are not determined.