Evaluation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in gasoline by HPLC and GC-MS

Summary In this paper the evaluation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in gasoline is described. A procedure involving a double extraction of samples with N-methylpirrolidone-water-phosphoric acid and with cyclohexane has been used followed by HPLC-DAD and GC-MS. The results obtained show that all gasoline samples contain PAHs with two to six rings and no substantial difference was noticed between leaded and unleaded gasoline. The benzo(a)-pyrene content ranged between 1.0–2.0 mg L⁻¹, a comparatively high concentration for a dangerous compound.