PAHs in corn grains submitted to drying with firewood

• Analysis of maize samples subjected to drying, revealed the presence of 7 PAHs.
• Food can be contaminated with PAHs through contact with the atmospheric air.
• The content of PAHs in grains dried using firewood as fuel depends on exposure time.
• The usage of wood as a fuel leads to contamination by PAHs.

Grain drying using firewood as fuel for air heating, with direct fire, is still widely used in Brazil. The combustion of organic material, such as wood, can generate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) which are known to have carcinogenic potential. In the present work corn grain drying was carried out at three drying air temperatures: 60 °C, 60/80 °C and 80 °C. Following the drying process, the presence and quantification of PAH in the corn grains was investigated. After extracting the PAHs of the matrix, the material was subjected to analysis by gas chromatography with mass detector. he results showed the presence of seven compounds: fluorene, phenanthrene, anthracene, fluoranthene, pyrene, benzo(a)anthracene and chrysene.