Reliability of the Assessment of Water Pollution by Petroleum Hydrocarbons and Phenols Using Some of Total Indices

The problems of the application of total indices “phenolic index” and “petroleum products” for water quality assessment are considered. It is demonstrated that these indices do not reflect the actual contamination of aquatic media by phenols and petroleum hydrocarbons. The effect of hydrocarbons of different classes on the error in determining petroleum products was revealed. The presence of phenols and other organic compounds was found to affect the results of the determination of the phenolic index. It is necessary to identify pollutants contained in wastewater to assess the applicability of total indices in the analysis of such waters. Marker components of wastewater must be included in the research program, in addition to total indices.