甲基叔丁基醚(MTBE)的环境生态效应

目前甲基叔丁基醚(MTBE)被广泛用作汽油添加剂,通过各种排放途径进入环境的数量不断增加。MTBE水溶性较强,在地下水中扩散快且难以生物降解,对地表水和地下水构成了潜在的污染,可对地下水造成持久性的危害;虽然MTBE的毒理学研究表明其对生物有一定的毒性,但对人类健康的有害性还在争议中。本文综述了有关MTBE生态环境效应方面的研究进展。

The Ecological Effects of Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (MTBE)

Methyl tert-butyl ether(MTBE)is widely used as reformulated gasoline oxygenate.It is so much used that the amount of MTBE discharged into the environment is increasing continuously.MTBE is of great water-solubility,so it diffuses rapidly in the water and composes potential pollution to the surface water and the groundwater.Furthermore,MTBE is hard to be biodegraded,so it may endanger the groundwater persistently.The studies on the toxicology of MTBE indicate that it has definite toxicity to the animals' livers,kidneys and the immunity functions,but really weaker toxicity to the procreation.MTBE could metabolize to methyl alcohol and tert-butyl alcohol(TBA),which are more toxic than MTBE itself in the bodies of animals and human beings.Therefore,some countries begin to restrict or forbid the use of MTBE.However,at present,lead-free gasoline with MTBE as reformulated gasoline oxygenate is still widely used in China.So we should pay more attention to its pollution as early as possible.The source and distributing of MTBE in the environment,its environmental behavior,the ecologic effects and toxicology of MTBE,including toxicity of oral exposure and inhalation exposure,toxicity of body exposure and toxicity of MTBE to plants and marine organisms,and metabolism study were reviewed.