Heterocyclic Aromatic Compounds: The Next Frontier in Environmental Forensic Science

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P olycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) are an important class of organic pollutants introduced into the environment through petrogenic, pyrogenic, and biogenic processes, including natural combustion, microbial transformation, and diagenetic formation pathways.This diverse family includes polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), alkylated PAHs (APAHs), halogenated PAHs (HPAHs), and heteropolycyclic aromatic compounds (HPACs).Because PAC input processes, or sources, generate complex chemical mixtures rather than isolated subclasses, the presence of alkylated and heterocyclic PACs in contaminated systems is inevitable.More than a decade ago, Andersson and Achten argued for the inclusion of alkylated, halogenated, and heterocyclic PACs in environmental assessments, warning that omitting them underestimates ecological risk by orders of magnitude.1 Based on our work with field samples and reference materials, we have further demonstrated that HPACs are more effective diagnostic markers than PAHs for source attribution in aquatic systems, compared to their homocyclic analogues.Several studies have investigated underrepresented PAC subclasses in the past decade using nontargeted analytical approaches. 2 These studies demonstrate that HPACs are widespread in the environment and have the potential to bioaccumulate.Despite this, HPACs have not been incorporated into environmental regulatory monitoring programs.This exclusion reflects practical challenges: a vast number of structural isomers, a scarcity of authentic standards and certified reference materials, and analytical protocols that fail