Prediction helps analytical experimental work for environmental purposes

Analytical work, especially for environmental purposes, involves in the typ ical case determination of organic compounds in compartments, where their p resence is very small. Identification of the appropriate experimental techn ique, whose range of applicability covers the concentration value involved, requires an estimate of this value. To this purpose, we present in this st udy a methodology for the prediction of the concentration of organic pollut ants in the various environmental compartments (aquatic biota, air, sedimen t and soil) from the knowledge of the concentration in one of them. In case where the pollutant's concentration is not available for any of the compar tments, the proposed methodology can be used to estimate the maximum expect ed concentration in each one of them assuming that the water phase is satur ated with the pollutant. The latter value can be obtained from a simple cor relation presented here. The methodology is based on the correlation of the partition coefficients o f pollutants among the various environmental compartments with two importan t thermodynamic quantities of pollutants: the octanol/water partition coeff icient and the Henry's law coefficient, which can be easily predicted by si mple models presented here. Application of the methodology to field experim ental data gives very satisfactory results at least for identifying the app ropriate experimental technique.