Wet deposition of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in The Netherlands

Abstract The concentrations of 11 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in rainwater at four locations in the Netherlands in 1983 are reported. From literature data for these PAH in air, scavenging ratios were calculated. For PAH predominantly adsorbed on aerosols these scavenging ratios are in the range 3–13 × 10 4 . For phenanthrene the scavenging ratios are in the range 0.35–2.5 × 10 4 . The data for the aerosol-associated PAH at the various locations are discussed in terms of aerosol in-cloud scavenging, and are compared with reported data from Belgium and Germany. The scavenging ratios for phenanthrene are compared with those predicted on the basis of Henry's law constant and were found to be less than one order of magnitude higher than expected, possibly because of enhanced aqueous solubility.