Profile for Hexabromocyclododecane and Its Degradation Product in River Sediment, Japan and Korea

Introduction Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), a class of additive brominated flame retardants (BFRs) in polystyrene foams and textile products, has been manufactured worldwide because of its remarkable flame retardancy. However, there is growing concern about whether its consumption should be prohibited in that HBCD has been recently reviewed not only as one of the candidate persistent organic pollutants (POPs) under the Stockholm Convention but also labeled amongst the Type I Monitoring Chemical Substance of the Chemical Substances Control Law, Japan. Monitoring survey of HBCD in biotic and abiotic environment has been done extensively over the past two decades. Furthermore, photolytically mediated loss of HBr from HBCD to form pentabromocyclododecenes (PBCDs) and tetrabromocyclododecadienes (TBCDs) has been reported in abiotic environment 1 , which attracted interest in its degradation products.