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Organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) in indoor and outdoor air in the Rhine/Main area, Germany: comparison of concentrations and distribution profiles in different microenvironments

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Abstract

The concentrations of 9 organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) were determined in 56 indoor and 9 outdoor air samples in the Rhine/Main area in Germany. The indoor samples were collected from seven different indoor microenvironments including private cars, private homes, floor/carpet stores, building material markets, schools, offices, and day care centers, while outdoor samples were simultaneously collected close to the indoor sampling locations. The total OPFR concentrations (∑OPFRs) in indoor air ranged from 3.30 to 751.0 ng/m3 with a median of 40.23 ng/m3, which was approximately eight times higher than those in outdoor air (median 5.38 ng/m3), indicating that sources of OPFRs predominate in the indoor environment. Tris(2-chloroisopropyl)phosphate (TCPP), tris(isobutyl)phosphate (TiBP), and tributyl phosphate (TnBP) were the dominating compounds both in indoor and outdoor air. The median concentration of ∑OPFRs in private cars (180.3 ng/m3) was significantly higher than that in private homes (12.51 ng/m3), schools (36.23 ng/m3), day care centers (31.80 ng/m3), and building material markets (31.17 ng/m3) (p < 0.05). Distribution profiles of OPFRs varied among different indoor microenvironments, which are evidenced by dominating indoor air concentrations of non-Cl-OPFRs in day care centers, floor/carpet stores, schools, and of Cl-OPFRs in other indoor microenvironments. Multivariate analyses revealed three distinct groups for OPFRs, i.e., TiBP/TnBP, TEP/TCEP/TDCPP, and TCPP, whose concentrations were closely associated with the distribution profiles and pollution characteristics of materials predominating in different indoor microenvironments.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support was provided for L. Zhou by the China scholarship council (No. CSC20143026).

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  1. Department of Environmental Analytical Chemistry, Institute of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, J. W. Goethe–University Frankfurt am Main, Altenhöferallee 1, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    Lingli Zhou, Marco Hiltscher, Daniel Gruber & Wilhelm Püttmann

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Zhou, L., Hiltscher, M., Gruber, D. et al. Organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) in indoor and outdoor air in the Rhine/Main area, Germany: comparison of concentrations and distribution profiles in different microenvironments. Environ Sci Pollut Res 24, 10992–11005 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-016-6902-z

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