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Characterization of Environmental Exposure: Measuring Versus Modeling

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Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II

Part of the book series: The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry ((HEC,volume 23))

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Abstract

Knowledge of pollutants’ occurrence in the environment is essential in order to undertake accurate risk assessment studies. Determining the concentration of chemicals is a crucial step to quantify the levels to which both ecosystems and human population can be exposed. Traditionally, analysis has been the main way for determining concentrations in the environment but in recent years innovative occurrence models enabling their prediction either in real or fictitious scenarios have been developed. These models allow obtaining reliable estimations by reducing the need of resource-intensive monitoring programs that are needed for laboratory analysis.

Prediction of chemical occurrence is a difficult task that depends on multitude of factors (i.e., physical–chemical properties, climate conditions, amount of product, mode of application, and exchange processes), but these models in combination with laboratory analysis can be a powerful tool for evaluating the chemical occurrence in the environment.

In this chapter the new trends in analytical chemistry for determining classical and emerging pollutants, as well as the use of predictive exposure models have been reviewed and their respective benefits and shortcomings have been briefly discussed.

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Abbreviations

CNT:

Carbon nanotubes

DBPs:

Disinfection by-products

EINECS:

The European inventory of existing commercial chemical substances

GC:

Gas chromatography

GCxGC:

Two-dimensional gas chromatography

GIS:

Geographic information system

IDA:

Information-dependent acquisition

KOC:

Organic carbon partition coefficient

KOW:

Octanol-water partition coefficient

LC:

Liquid chromatography

LOD:

Limit of detection

MAE:

Microwave-assisted extraction

MEC:

Measured environmental concentration

MS:

Mass spectrometry

MS/MS:

Tandem mass spectrometry

PAHs:

Polyaromatic hydrocarbons

PCBs:

Polychlorinated biphenyls

PEC:

Predicted environmental concentration

PFCs:

Perfluorinated compounds

POCIS:

Oolar organic chemical integrative samplers

QqLIT:

Hybrid quadrupole linear ion trap

QqTOF:

Hybrid quadrupole time-of-flight

QSAR:

Quantitative structure–activity relationship

REACH:

Registration, evaluation, and authorization of chemicals

SFE:

Supercritical fluid extraction

SPME:

Solid phase micro extraction

SRM:

Selected reaction monitoring

ToF:

Time-of-flight

TWA:

Time-weighted average

UPLC:

Ultra high performance liquid chromatography

UV:

Ultraviolet

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department Environmental Chemistry, Institute of Environmental Diagnostic and Water Studies (IDAEA), Spanish Council of Scientific Research (CSIC), Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034, Barcelona, Spain

    Daniel Guillén, Antoni Ginebreda & Damià Barceló

  2. CERTEC, Department of Chemical Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, ETSEIB, Diagonal 647, pav. G, 08028, Barcelona, Spain

    Rosa M. Darbra

  3. ICRA, Edifici H2O, Emili Grahit, 101, 17003, Girona, Spain

    Meritxell Gros, Mira Petrovic & Damià Barceló

  4. ICREA, Passeig Lluís Companys, 23, 08010, Barcelona, Spain

    Mira Petrovic

Authors
  1. Daniel Guillén
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  2. Antoni Ginebreda
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  3. Rosa M. Darbra
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  4. Meritxell Gros
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  5. Mira Petrovic
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  6. Damià Barceló
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Daniel Guillén .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Institute of Waste Management and Contam, Dresden University of Technology, Pratzschwitzer Str. 15, Pirna, 01796, Sachsen, Germany

    Bernd Bilitewski

  2. , CERTEC, UPC – Polytechnic University of Cataloni, Pavelló G. 6471a Planta, Barcelona, 08028, Spain

    Rosa Mari Darbra

  3. , Department of Environmental Chemistry, IDAEA-CSIC, c/Jordi Girona 18-26, Barcelona, 08034, Spain

    Damià Barceló

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Guillén, D., Ginebreda, A., Darbra, R.M., Gros, M., Petrovic, M., Barceló, D. (2012). Characterization of Environmental Exposure: Measuring Versus Modeling. In: Bilitewski, B., Darbra, R., Barceló, D. (eds) Global Risk-Based Management of Chemical Additives II. The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry, vol 23. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/698_2012_190

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