Holistic Chemical Diagnosis
Global changes—including climate change, population growth, the expansion of megacities, and industrial acceleration—are driving a worldwide dynamic of environmental (in)organic pollutants that urgently needs to be better characterized. This research axis combines a dual approach: analyzing organic and inorganic pollution in various environmental matrices and developing appropriate methodological and analytical tools.
Analysis of (In)Organic Pollutants in Environmental Compartments
The TRAME team’s research is integrated into observatories and long-term field sites (e.g., the Camargue, the Marine Observatory of the Gulf of Fos, and the Marseille metropolitan area supported by CNRS MITI). Alongside these local study zones, international sites such as the Red River in Vietnam and the Gulf of Tadjourah in Djibouti are also explored in collaboration with local academic partners, to assess chemical contamination levels. The studies cover a wide range of matrices (surface water—both freshwater and marine—, groundwater, soils, biota) to examine the eco-dynamics of these pollutants and estimate their potential impacts on ecosystems (coastal habitats, benthic ecosystems, water and fishery resources) and human activities (like fishing).
In these environments, several emerging chemical contaminants are targeted due to their known hazards, persistence, or the current lack of knowledge regarding their behavior in the environment.
Among these compounds are highly hydrophobic substances like short-chain chlorinated paraffins, and flame retardants, which encompass various molecular families—brominated, chlorinated, and phosphorated compounds. Some are now banned and listed on European watch lists for water bodies, yet are still produced in Asia. Many replacement chemicals with varied physico-chemical properties are entering the market, but are not currently monitored in the environment.
Also studied are perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), used in numerous industries (automotive, food, textiles…). Some PFAS are included in the Stockholm Convention’s "dirty dozen", but current monitoring is mostly limited to surface waters. These compounds will be investigated in water, biota, soil, and sediments.
The TRAME team is also interested in micro- and nano-plastics (MP and NP) and their chemical load (organic and metallic pollutants), which are now known to be ubiquitous in many environmental compartments. However, limited data exists on atmospheric MPs and NPs (from wet and dry deposition), and their presence in groundwater remains largely unexplored—even though such waters provide around 80% of potable water resources.
Another emerging theme in TRAME's research concerns chlorination by-products, particularly those from industrial discharges along the marine coast, and emissions related to the use of applied electrical currents in offshore floating wind turbines. These studies combine field measurements with laboratory simulations to model the kinetics of formation and transformation of these compounds. These by-products are being monitored across different environmental compartments (fresh and saltwater, sediments, biota, and air).
Additional work focuses on improving molecular approaches (e.g., abundance ratios, isomeric ratios) and developing or prioritizing isotopic methods (like GC-C-IRMS) to tackle pollution source tracking, particularly for hydrocarbons, pesticides, and chlorinated solvents.
The reactive transfers of trace metals, organic micropollutants, and organic matter in water and soils are strongly interconnected—studying one component cannot be separated from the others. The environmental reality requires consideration of multiphase systems (e.g., water-soil or water-sediment) and the interactions between organic and mineral matrices. Within this context, TRAME's research on natural attenuation and transfers (soil–plant, soil–water, sediment–water) aims to explore reactive transfers of organic matter, organic micropollutants, and metals—and to develop the necessary tools for quantifying and monitoring them in both natural and human-impacted environments. This work contributes to a better understanding of multi-pollution and synergistic effects in environmental risk assessment
Development of Methodological and Analytical Tools
Given the rapid transformation of some pollutants in water and their extremely low concentrations, TRAME is developing new designs of passive samplers that act as chemical "sensors" of ambient environmental conditions. The use of tools such as silicone, LDPE, and POCIS is now more widely accepted by the scientific community and well-documented for legacy pollutants (like PCBs, OCPs, and PAHs). However, key sampling parameters for many newly regulated or emerging contaminants still need to be determined, in order to expand the applicability of these tools and refine the associated models. Passive samplers are particularly well suited to study the spatial distribution of hydrophobic organic pollutants across the marine surface microlayer (1000 µm), underlying waters (−0.4, −1, −3 m), and intermediate/benthic layers.
The second component of this axis is the development of alternative analytical methods. This includes the creation of automated analysis systems (online analysis) or field-testing kits.
The TRAME team notably develops online analyzers based on flow analysis techniques such as :
- FIA (Flow Injection Analysis),
- SIA (Sequential Injection Analysis),
- MSFIA (MultiSyringe Flow Injection Analysis),
- MPFS (Multi Pumping Flow Systems),
- and MSC (Multi-Syringe Chromatography).
TRAME is also working on microplate-based analysis kits to assess the biogeochemical reactivity of samples or to quantify the content of environmentally relevant functional groups. In this context, the team is developing fluorescent chemical probes for derivatization reactions that allow the detection and quantification of these functional groups