Concentrations of organophosphate esters and brominated flame retardants in German indoor dust samples

Abstract

While it is known that the ingestion of indoor dust contributes substantially to human exposure to the recently restricted polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), the situation for one class of potential replacements, i.e. organophosphate esters (OPEs), used in a variety of applications including as flame retardants has yet to be fully characterised. In this study, surface dust from twelve different cars from various locations throughout Germany were analysed for eight OPEs, decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE), and eight PBDEs. In five cars, tris-(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCPP) was the dominant compound with concentrations up to 620 μg g(-1) dust. High concentrations of tri-cresyl phosphate (TCP) (up to 150 μg g(-1)) were also detected in two samples of car dust. Dust from ten offices in the same building in Ludwigsburg, Germany was also analysed. In these samples, tri (2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (TBEP) predominated with an average concentration of 7.0 μg g(-1) dust, followed by tris (1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP) at 3.0 μg g(-1) and triphenyl phosphate (TPhP) at 2.5 μg g(-1) dust. Although caution must be exercised given the relatively small database reported here; this study provides evidence that cars and offices from Germany are significantly more contaminated with OPEs than PBDEs. Average concentrations of ΣOPEs were ten times higher in car than in office dust. This is the first study to provide data on a wide range of OPE concentrations in German indoor dust samples.

Development and validation of a multi-residue method for the analysis of brominated and organophosphate flame retardants in indoor dust

“…results showed a good agreement with both OPFR and PBDE concentrations previously reported in Australian indoor dust [36,37]. Compared with the concentrations found in other countries, OPFR concentrations here were lower than those in Germany [12], but comparable with those in Netherlands [38], Canada and Kazakhstan [36]. PBDE concentrations in this study were lower than those of the USA [39], but were similar to UK concentrations [40].…”

“…High detection frequencies and high concentrations of both BFRs and OPFRs were reported in indoor dust which is an important route of exposure, especially for children, since their more frequent hand-to-mouth contact and close-to-ground behaviour could lead to higher amount of dust ingestion, and their lower body weigh results in a higher daily exposure [8]. This has led to an increased interest in levels and distributions of BFRs and OPFRs in indoor dust [9][10][11][12]. Thus, a method capable of simultaneously analysing OPFRs and BFRs in dust is required.…”

Toxicogenomic Responses of Zebrafish Embryos/Larvae to Tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) Phosphate (TDCPP) Reveal Possible Molecular Mechanisms of Developmental Toxicity

“…4 Higher concentrations of TDCPP (mean = 130 μg/g) were detected in car dust in Germany. 5 These data suggest that human exposure to TDCPP might commonly occur in some areas. Furthermore, Meeker et al reported a significant correlation between urinary bis(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (BDCPP, a metabolite of TDCPP) and TDCPP concentrations in house dust, 6 suggesting that household dust is an important source for human exposure to TDCPP.…”

Detection and intake assessment of organophosphate flame retardants in house dust in Japanese dwellings

“…We cited the value of the reference dose (RfD) from previous studies (Ali et al, 2012b;Brommer et al, 2012;Van den Eede et al, 2011). The RfD values were the same in these studies.…”

“…In addition, elementary school students are considered a high-risk group for exposure to house dust because their body weight is lower and they spend more time at home than adults. In recent years (Ali et al, 2012a;Brommer et al, 2012;Stapleton et al, 2009;Van den Eede et al, 2011), studies have shown that intake (both inhaled dust and eaten dust) to PFRs from dust is 2.5 (mean intake) to 4.0 (high intake) times higher for children than for adults.…”