Pollinator watch: Evaluating environmental contamination through beehive air volatiles with portable mass spectrometric systems
Creators: name: Ilić, Daria
name: Brkic, Boris
name: Vujić, Đorđe
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024

description:  

INTRODUCTION

This study advocates a novel approach to biomonitoring, employing the honey bee Apis mellifera L. and the air matrix inside beehives in urbanized regions as cost-effective bioindicators. Using a portable membrane inlet mass spectrometry (MIMS) instrument, the research focuses on instant and effective determination of environmental pollution by analyzing hive atmosphere volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (BTEX) compounds, and bee pheromones. In this way, the successful application of MIMS technology not only showcases an innovative approach to real-time VOC monitoring in beehives, but also establishes validated methodology for future environmental studies.

METHODS

The innovative method employed in this study involves the use of a MIMS system with a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) sheet membrane probe for the in-field detection of VOCs, BTEX, PAHs, and bee pheromones emanating within beehives. Field testing of beehives consisted of direct sampling, including the preliminary definition of system and membrane parameters, sampling position, and duration of sampling, as well as the determination of the target compounds. To validate the results, the method underwent benchmarking using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The sample collection process for GC-MS analysis involved using an air flow pump for 24 hours continuously, equipped with ORBO 100 sorbents in close proximity to the honey bee hive.

PRELIMENARY DATA

This study aims to develop an in-field method of hive analysis with the MIMS portable instrument and explore the chemical composition of beehive air, focusing on components that pose contamination risks and environmental harm. The pivotal parameters governing the methodology employed in the bee hive air analysis, encompass: membrane characteristics, membrane temperature, spatial separation between the beehives and the analytical apparatus, sampling duration, and the specific time of the year. Employing the portable MIMS analytical method and GC-MS technique, we identified volatile components, spanning alcohols, aldehydes, esters, hydrocarbons, phenol, ketones, terpenes, pesticides, PAHs, BTEX compounds and bee pheromones. After defining the target compounds for this research (BTEX, PAHs, bee pheromones), preliminary results from MIMS revealed the presence of PAHs, alarm pheromones, and BTEX compounds in the beehive air samples. Using USGS (United States Geological Survey) data, assessment of the dispersion of BTEX in the air was performed around beehives located in urbanized regions. Spatial analysis pinpointed three critical sources contributing to potential BTEX spread: gas stations, coal heating in residential areas, and high traffic volume. Addressing these sources is crucial for mitigating environmental and public health risks. The preeminent compounds identified, accentuate the inherent capacity of volatile constituents within beehive air as discerning markers indicative of environmental contamination. This study shows that their detection can be expeditiously, facilely, and precisely accomplished through the utilization of a portable membrane inlet mass spectrometry instrument.