Investigation of Benzo-[a]-Pyrene Residue on Palestinian Olive Fruits and in Olive Oil

Abstract

Olive trees, fruits and oil play an essential part of the Mediterranean life, culture, economy and diet. Taking good care the trees, fruits and oil is one of the main concerns to the farmers in Palestine, because of the impact on the final quality of olives.  Proximity of the olive tree to streets frequented by high traffic diesel trucks influences the overall health of the trees that affects quality of the product. Exhaust emission from diesel engines releases by product called Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH’s), which are known to be carcinogenic agents. The purpose of the project is to analyze olive fruits and olive oil for the presence of such chemicals using Solid-Phase Extraction (SPE) followed by Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) and U.V. Florescence for rapid Detection. Interesting results were obtained and showed that most olive oil samples tested negative, while the olive fruits tested positive for PAH’s.