Seasonal variation and human exposure assessment of legacy and novel brominated flame retardants in PM2.5 in different microenvironments in Beijing, China

• Published in: Ecotoxicology and environmental safety Vol. 173; pp. 526 - 534
• Main Authors: Wang, Dou, Wang, Pu, Zhu, Ying, Yang, Ruiqiang, Zhang, Weiwei, Matsiko, Julius, Meng, Wenying, Zuo, Peijie, Li, Yingming, Zhang, Qinghua, Jiang, Guibin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Inc 30.05.2019
• Subjects: Human exposure; Indoor and outdoor PM2.5; Novel and legacy brominated flame retardants (BFRs); Seasonal variation; Novel and legacy brominated flame retardants (BFRs); Indoor and outdoor PM2.5; Seasonal variation; Human exposure
• ISSN: 0147-6513; 1090-2414
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2019.02.049

Indoor exposure to legacy and novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) may cause potential risks to human health. Studies on seasonal variations of indoor PM2.5-bound BFRs are scant. This study comprehensively investigated the seasonal variations of PM2.5-bound polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and NBFRs in various indoor environments (i.e. activity room, dormitory, home and office) and outdoor PM2.5 in Beijing, China over one year. The levels of PBDE (226 ± 108 pg m−3) were higher than that of NBFRs (27.0 ± 16.0 pg m−3) in all indoor environments. Decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209) and decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE) were the most abundant BFRs. Office showed the highest mean concentrations of Σ15PBDEs (251 ± 125 pg m−3) and Σ9NBFRs (33.0 ± 18.0 pg m−3), which may be related to the higher number density of indoor materials. The concentrations of Σ9NBFRs and Σ15PBDE in indoor PM2.5 were found to be significantly higher than those in the corresponding outdoor PM2.5 (p < 0.05). Two to twenty-fold seasonal variations were observed for levels of PM2.5-bound BFRs during one year, and indoor concentrations increased slightly during the central-heating period (November 2016-March 2017). Seasonal variations of BFRs could be affected by temperature, relative humidity and concentrations of particle matters. The PM2.5-bound BFRs concentrations in PM2.5 were negatively correlated with temperature and relative humidity, while positively correlated with PM2.5 concentrations (p < 0.05). Atmospheric haze pollution could possibly contribute to higher levels of indoor PM2.5-bound BFRs. Human daily intake of BFRs via PM2.5 inhalation showed seasonal differences, and the highest exposure risk occurred in winter. Toddlers were assessed to be more vulnerable to indoor PM2.5-bound BFRs in all seasons. This study provided the first-hand measurements of seasonal concentrations and human exposure to PM2.5-bound BFRs in different indoor scenarios in Beijing. •PBDE levels were higher than those of NBFRs in different microenvironments.•The indoor BFR levels were higher than those in the paired outdoor samples.•BFR variations were related to temperature, humidity and PM2.5 concentrations.•Toddlers were assessed to be more vulnerable to indoor PM2.5-bound BFRs in winter.