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Composition and effects of inhalable size fractions of atmospheric aerosols in the polluted atmosphere: Part I. PAHs, PCBs and OCPs and the matrix chemical composition

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Abstract

Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) abundance, mass size distribution (MSD) and chemical composition are parameters relevant for human health effects. The MSD and phase state of semivolatile organic pollutants were determined at various polluted sites in addition to the PM composition and MSD. The distribution pattern of pollutants varied from side to side in correspondence to main particle sources and PM composition. Levels of particle-associated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were 1–30 ng m−3 (corresponding to 15–35 % of the total, i.e., gas and particulate phase concentrations), of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were 2–11 pg m−3 (4–26 % of the total) and of DDT compounds were 2–12 pg m−3 (4–23 % of the total). The PM associated amounts of other organochlorine pesticides were too low for quantification. The organics were preferentially found associated with particles <0.45 μm of aerodynamic equivalent diameter. The mass fractions associated with sub-micrometer particles (PM0.95) were 73–90 %, 34–71 % and 36–81 % for PAHs, PCBs and DDT compounds, respectively. The finest particles fraction had the highest aerosol surface concentration (6.3–29.7)×10−6 cm−1 (44–70 % of the surface concentration of all size fractions). The data set was used to test gas-particle partitioning models for semivolatile organics for the first time in terms of the organics' MSD and size-dependent PM composition. The results of this study prove that at the various sites particles with diverse size, matrix composition, amount of contaminants and toxicological effects occur. Legislative regulation based on gravimetric determination of PM mass can clearly be insufficient for assessment.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the Ministry of Environment of the Czech Republic (SP1a3/29/07), the EC FP7 project ArcRisk (226534), and by the Granting Agency of the Czech Republic (P503/11/1230). The RECETOX research infrastructure was supported by the project of the Ministry of Education of the Czech Republic LM2011028 and the CETOCOEN project of the European Structural Funds (CZ.1.05/2.1.00/01.001). Special thanks are due to F. Laufek and J. Malec for the XRD and SEM analysis.

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  1. Faculty of Science, Research Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 625 00, Brno, Czech Republic

    Linda Landlová, Pavel Čupr, Jana Klánová & Gerhard Lammel

  2. Czech Geological Survey, Leitnerova 22, 658 69, Brno, Czech Republic

    Juraj Franců

  3. Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Hahn-Meitner-Weg 1, 55128, Mainz, Germany

    Gerhard Lammel

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  1. Linda Landlová
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Landlová, L., Čupr, P., Franců, J. et al. Composition and effects of inhalable size fractions of atmospheric aerosols in the polluted atmosphere: Part I. PAHs, PCBs and OCPs and the matrix chemical composition. Environ Sci Pollut Res 21, 6188–6204 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-2571-y

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