Emerging contaminants and degradation products: do they move from contaminated soil to lettuce and tomatoes?

In order to assess the potential translocation of benzophenone (BP), benzophenone-3 (BP3), bisphenol A (BPA), nonylphenol (4-NP) and their degradation products to edible vegetables, lettuce and tomatoes were cultivated on polluted and uncontaminated (Blank) soil. Lettuce was collected after about 54 d (T1), while tomatoes were picked up at about 53 d (T1), 68 d (T2), 81 d (T3), 90 d (T4), and 112 d (T5). BP in the contaminated soils remained constant over time except for the tomato pot from time T3, while BP3 decreased over time. As for the vegetables, BP and BP3 in tomatoes were sometime higher than in the Blank. BPA in soil was degraded very rapidly (2 d), resulting in hydroxybenzoic acid (p-HBA) and hydroxyacetophenone (p-HAP). No BPA was found in the vegetables, but p-HBA was found at high concentrations in the vegetables from the contaminated pots. Though p-HAP was found in some soil samples from the contaminated pots, it was never found in the vegetables. A huge decrease in 4-NP concentration occurred in the contaminated soils by time T1. Vegetables from the contaminated pots had high 4-NP concentrations, and p-cresol was frequently detected. Phenol was found in the tomatoes from the contaminated pot.