Department of Fossil Fuels and Environmental Geochemistry,
Drummond Building,
University of Newcastle,
Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK
Abstract
Partitioning between organic, water and mineral phases is one of the main processes controlling the transport properties of organic compounds in sediments. The measurement and prediction of these transport properties are central topics in various fields of organic geochemical research. Important geochemical issues, ranging from the changes in petroleum composition during migration to the bioavailability of carcinogenic polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds in urban environment sites, are all directly controlled by organic compound partitioning.