Assessment of carcinogenic risk due to inhalation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in PM₁₀ from an industrial city: A Korean case-study

• Published in: Journal of hazardous materials Vol. 189; no. 1-2; pp. 349 - 356
• Main Authors: Vu, Van-Tuan, Lee, Byeong-Kyu, Kim, Ji-Tae, Lee, Chi-Hyeon, Kim, Ick-Hyun
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier B.V 15.05.2011; Elsevier
• Subjects: air; Air Pollutants - analysis; Applied sciences; Atmospheric pollution; breathing; carcinogenicity; Carcinogens; Chemical engineering; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Cities; Correlation; Environmental Exposure - analysis; Environmental Health; Environmental Monitoring - methods; Exact sciences and technology; filters; hexane; high performance liquid chromatography; Humans; Korea; methylene chloride; pollutants; Pollution; Polyallylamine hydrochloride; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons - analysis; quartz; residential areas; risk; Safety; samplers; Sampling; Seasons; spring; Springs; Summer; Toxicity; Korean Peninsula; Korea, Rep; Correlation; Toxicity; Samplings; HPLC chromatography; Extract; Urban area; Spatial variation; Coarse particle; Persistent organic pollutant; TEQs; Risk assessment; Sampling; Organic compounds; Atmospheric condition; Hydrocarbon; Risk analysis; Polycyclic aromatic compound; Inhalation; Correlation analysis; Sampler; Aerosols; Toxic equivalency factor; Air pollution; PAHs; Industrial area; Nitrogen dioxide; PM
• ISSN: 0304-3894; 1873-3336
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2011.02.043

This study investigated the effects of meteorological conditions and spatial variations on the toxicity of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in airborne PM₁₀ in Ulsan, the largest industrial city in Korea. Daily PM₁₀ samples were collected on quartz microfiber filters using high volume samplers located in a downtown area, a residential area and an industrial area of Ulsan during spring and summer sampling periods. Sixteen individual PAHs were extracted into a mixture solution of dichloromethane and n-hexane (1:1, v/v) in an ultrasonic bath and were analyzed using a high performance liquid chromatography system with an ultra-violet detector (HPLC-UVD). The average total PAH concentrations from the three representative sampling sites of Ulsan ranged from 16.15 to 57.12ng/m³ in spring and from 11.11 to 34.56ng/m³ in summer. The toxicity equivalent concentrations (TEQs) of the PAHs in PM₁₀ of Ulsan ranged from 1.82 to 13.1ng/m³, with an average level of 4.17ng/m³. The highest TEQs were found in the downtown area, which had an average value of 6.30ng/m³ in spring and 5.52ng/m³ in summer. BaP and DahA were identified as the major carcinogenic PAHs that contributed to 34.8 and 59.4% of the total carcinogenic potency of PAHs in PM₁₀ in Ulsan. The identified TEQs were highly correlated (r²=0.73–0.90, p<0.01) with the total PAH concentrations for each area. The TEQs showed a significant correlation (p<0.01) with the concentration of air pollutants, including PM₁₀, PM₂.₅ and NO₂.