Abstract
Commuters’ exposure to size-segregated fine particulates in four public transport microenvironments was assessed in the Kolkata megacity of India. Personal exposure to PM2.5 and PM1 varied from 130.8 & 112.1 μg m−3 in air-conditioned (AC) buses, followed by 158.5 μg m−3 & 134.3 μg m−3 in non-AC buses, 187.1 μg m−3 & 150.8 μg m−3 in non-AC cars, to 242.2 μg m−3 & 199.6 μg m−3 in 3-wheeler auto rickshaws, respectively. The exposure ratio for PM1/PM2.5 was comparable in all transport modes (0.64 to 0.94, 0.83 ± 0.07). The micromorphology of fine particulates, studied by scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry, revealed several morphological features in both inorganic and carbonaceous particulates with Al, Si, Ca, K, Fe, and S impregnations. Soot particles were predominantly present in PM< 0.25, and its semi-aggregated net-like structure trapped fine and ultrafine particles. The possible formation of carbonaceous aerosols from inorganic seeds via the nucleation pathway was also captured. The estimated deposition rate in the human respiratory system translated into a total PM2.5 respiratory deposition rate (RDR) of 25.5 ± 8.9 μg h−1 in the respiratory tract was about 26% of the entire inhalation exposure to PM2.5. The average RDR of PM2.5–1.0 and PM1.0–0.5 was 11.7 ± 5.9 μg h−1 and 4.5 ± 2.3 μg h−1 that may get preferentially deposited in the head airways of the human respiratory system (75% and 60%, respectively). While the finest particles mainly get deposited in the deepest alveolar region of the human respiratory system (the RDR for PM0.5–0.25 and PM< 0.25 was 3.5 ± 1.5 μg h−1 (49%) and 5.8 ± 2.5 μg h−1 (79%), respectively). The highest airway deposition of PM2.5 in auto rickshaw commuters indicates that this transport mode could be the most harmful to commuters exposing them to tailpipe emissions from on-road vehicles and resuspended road dust due to low floor height and the open nature of the vehicle. Auto rickshaw commuters should practice using PM2.5-restricting face masks to reduce exposure to fine particulates while commuting when this mode of commute cannot be avoided.
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Data availability
The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
The senior authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the Director, CSIR-NEERI, for the guidance and institutional support in conducting the study. The authors also gratefully acknowledge the contribution of Mr. Pratyush Sengupta in the SEM-EDX analysis. The manuscript has been cross-checked for similarity index by iThenticate software at the Knowledge Resource Centre (KRC) of CSIR-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-NEERI/KRC/2022/NOV/KZC/1).
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This research was conducted with the institutional resources of CSIR-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute and the University of Calcutta. It did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
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Dipanjali Majumdar and Deepanjan Majumdar contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation and data collection were performed by R. M., A. M., K. S., and Dipanjali Majumdar. Analysis was performed by K. S. and Dipanjali Majumdar. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Dipanjali Majumdar. K. S., Deepanjan Majumdar, and Dipanjali Majumdar were involved in the multiple revisions to prepare the final version.
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Majumdar, D., Mondal, R., Mondal, A. et al. Micromorphology of size-segregated aerosols and their airway deposition in public transport commuters. Air Qual Atmos Health 16, 2133–2147 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11869-023-01395-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11869-023-01395-0