The distribution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons pollution and the characteristics of microbial diversity in the soil of coal mining areas.

Abstract

The distribution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soil and their impact on soil bacterial communities have garnered significant attention. In this study, we selected the representative Huainan Panji coal mining area as our research site to analyze the diversity of bacterial communities in four distinct zones within the mining area, as well as the relationship between environmental factors and PAHs contamination. A total of 16 PAHs were found to be enriched in the soil, with notably higher concentrations in the coal gangue hill area compared to other regions. Proteobacteria, Acidobacteriota, Actinobacteriota, Bacteroidota, and Chloroflexi emerged as the dominant bacterial communities across all soil samples. As the concentration of PAHs increased, the relative abundance of Proteobacteria and Acidobacteriota also rose, while the relative abundance of Nitrospirota exhibited a negative correlation with PAH concentrations. Furthermore, the impacts of PAHs, total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN), and total sulfur (TS) on the dominant bacterial communities differed among different soil zones within the mining area. The findings of this study provide insights into the contamination characteristics of PAHs in mining area soils and the associated bacterial communities, serving as a valuable basis for further research in this field.