Suchergebnisse

AbstractFireworks pollute the local atmosphere with various air pollutants, which can pose a health hazard for the local population. Mass and number concentrations of aerosols were measured before, during, and after the 2016/2017 New Year event in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Our findings highlight the negative impact of fireworks on the environment. First, both the mass concentration of black carbon and the number of concentrations of nanoparticles between 80 and 150 nm increased shortly after midnight. Second, on Jan 1, 2017, there was an increase in the average daily mass concentrations of PM10 and PM2.5. Third, on this day, our devices also detected increased air pollution by Al, Ba, Sr, and Cu, that is, heavy metals usually associated with fireworks. Their Jan 1 mass concentrations were more than 10 times (and Sr more than 140 times) higher than their average daily mass concentrations from Jan 3 (when their mass concentrations returned to more normal levels) to Jan 31. We also found that pairwise correlations between nanoparticles, PM10, and black carbon are positive, strong, and statistically significant. Besides carbon, the chemical analysis of the collected particles revealed the presence of typical elements used in pyrotechnic devices and their significant positive correlation.

The major purpose of human biomonitoring is the mapping and assessment of human exposure to chemicals. The European initiative HBM4EU has prioritized seven substance groups and two metals relevant for human exposure: Phthalates and substitutes (1,2-cyclohexane dicarboxylic acid diisononyl ester, DINCH), bisphenols, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), halogenated and organophosphorous flame retardants (HFRs and OPFRs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), arylamines, cadmium and chromium. As a first step towards comparable European-wide data, the most suitable biomarkers, human matrices and analytical methods for each substance group or metal were selected from the scientific literature, based on a set of selection criteria. The biomarkers included parent compounds of PFASs and HFRs in serum, of bisphenols and arylamines in urine, metabolites of phthalates, DINCH, OPFRs and PAHs in urine as well as metals in blood and urine, with a preference to measure Cr in erythrocytes representing Cr (VI) exposure. High performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was the method of choice for bisphenols, PFASs, the HFR hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD), phenolic HFRs as well as the metabolites of phthalates, DINCH, OPFRs and PAHs in urine. Gas chromatographic (GC) methods were selected for the remaining compounds, e.g. GC-low resolution MS with electron capture negative ionization (ECNI) for HFRs. Both GC-MS and LC-MS/MS were suitable for arylamines. New developments towards increased applications of GC-MS/MS may offer alternatives to GC-MS or LC-MS/MS approaches, e.g. for bisphenols. The metals were best determined by inductively coupled plasma (ICP)-MS, with the particular challenge of avoiding interferences in the Cd determination in urine. The evaluation process revealed research needs towards higher sensitivity and non-invasive sampling as well as a need for more stringent quality assurance/quality control applications and assessments. ; This study was part of the HBM4EU project receiving funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 733032. The authors acknowledge Ana Gonzalez Antuña (University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria), Lauma Buša (University of Latvia), Govindan Malarvannan and Celine Gys (University of Antwerp) for their help with the literature search. ; Sí

The major purpose of human biomonitoring is the mapping and assessment of human exposure to chemicals. The European initiative HBM4EU has prioritized seven substance groups and two metals relevant for human exposure: Phthalates and substitutes (1,2-cyclohexane dicarboxylic acid diisononyl ester, DINCH), bisphenols, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), halogenated and organophosphorous flame retardants (HFRs and OPFRs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), arylamines, cadmium and chromium. As a first step towards comparable European-wide data, the most suitable biomarkers, human matrices and analytical methods for each substance group or metal were selected from the scientific literature, based on a set of selection criteria. The biomarkers included parent compounds of PFASs and HFRs in serum, of bisphenols and arylamines in urine, metabolites of phthalates, DINCH, OPFRs and PAHs in urine as well as metals in blood and urine, with a preference to measure Cr in erythrocytes representing Cr (VI) exposure. High performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was the method of choice for bisphenols, PFASs, the HFR hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD), phenolic HFRs as well as the metabolites of phthalates, DINCH, OPFRs and PAHs in urine. Gas chromatographic (GC) methods were selected for the remaining compounds, e.g. GC-low resolution MS with electron capture negative ionization (ECNI) for HFRs. Both GC–MS and LC-MS/MS were suitable for arylamines. New developments towards increased applications of GC–MS/MS may offer alternatives to GC–MS or LC-MS/MS approaches, e.g. for bisphenols. The metals were best determined by inductively coupled plasma (ICP)-MS, with the particular challenge of avoiding interferences in the Cd determination in urine. The evaluation process revealed research needs towards higher sensitivity and non-invasive sampling as well as a need for more stringent quality assurance/quality control applications and assessments. ; This study was part of the HBM4EU project receiving funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 733032.