Legacy and emerging flame retardants (FRs) in the urban atmosphere of Pakistan: Diurnal variations, gas-particle partitioning and human health exposure

Syed, Jabir Hussain; Iqbal, Mehreen; Breivik, Knut; Chaudhry, Muhammad Jamshed Iqbal; Shahnawaz, Muhammad; Abbas, Zaigham; Nasir, Jawad; Rizvi, Syed Hussain Haider; Taqi, Malik Mumtaz; Li, Jun; Zhang, Gan

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140874

Cited by 18 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…Significant seasonality was observed for DBDPE concentrations, which was high during winter (63 ± 146 pg/m 3 ) and lower in summer (5 ± 27 pg/m 3 ). Their levels were double those in Dalian and Pakistan but comparable to the global study, as shown in Table S11.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 79%

“…BDE 28 exhibited the highest level comprising ∼60% of ∑ 7 PBDEs in the gaseous phase followed by BDE 183 (11%) and BDE 47 (10%), whereas BDE 183 prevailed (30%) in the PM 2.5 phase followed by BDE 28 (15%). The PBDE levels in our study are comparable to those of studies in Dalian 21 and Beijing, 22 1−2 orders of magnitude lower than those reported in eight cities of Pakistan averaged at 172 pg/m, 3,23 and 20 big cities globally averaged at 42 pg/m 3 , 16 as summarized in Table S10.…”

Section: ■ Materials and Methodssupporting

confidence: 84%

“…TDBPP dominated in both phases (27%), followed by TCPP (24%) and TCEP (23%). Our result was 1−2 orders of magnitude higher than those in the Beijing−Tianjin−Hebei region of China, 35 Izmir of Turkey, 36 and Stockholm of Sweden 37 but similar to Pakistan (∼25 ng/ m 3 ), 23 as summarized in Table S13.…”

Section: ■ Materials and Methodssupporting

confidence: 45%

“…26 In this study, DBDPE (42%) contributed double of what BDE 209 (20%) contributed to the total halogenated FRs. In contrast, the DBPDE level was much lower than that of BDE 209 in Pakistan, 23 indicating varied usage patterns.…”

Section: ■ Materials and Methodsmentioning

confidence: 89%

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Probing Legacy and Alternative Flame Retardants in the Air of Chinese Cities

Zhao

Tian

Zou

et al. 2021

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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An increasing number of alternative flame retardants (FRs) are being introduced, following the international bans on the use of polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) commercial mixtures. FRs’ production capacity has shifted from developed countries to developing countries, with China being the world’s largest producer and consumer of FRs. These chemicals are also imported with e-waste to China. Therefore, it is important to understand the current status of regulated brominated FRs, their phase-out in China, and their replacement by alternatives. In this study, a broad suite of legacy and alternative FRs, including eight PBDEs, six novel brominated FRs (NBFRs), two dechlorane plus variants (DPS), and 12 organophosphate FRs (OPFRs) were evaluated in the air of 10 large Chinese cities in 2018. OPFRs are the most prevalent FRs in China, exhibiting a wide range of 1–612 ng/m3, which is several orders of magnitude higher than PBDEs (1–1827 pg/m3) and NBFRs (1–1428 pg/m3). BDE 209 and DBDPE are the most abundant compounds in brominated FRs (>80%). The North China Plain (NCP, excluding Beijing), Guangzhou, and Lanzhou appear to be three hotspots, although with different FR patterns. From 2013/2014 to 2018, levels of PBDEs, NBFRs, and DPs have significantly decreased, while that of OPFRs has increased by 1 order of magnitude. Gas-particle partitioning analysis showed that FRs could have not reached equilibrium, and the steady-state model is better suited for FRs with a higher log K OA (>13). To facilitate a more accurate FR assessment in fine particles, we suggest that, in addition to the conventional volumetric concentration (pg/m3), the mass-normalized concentration (pg/g PM2.5) could also be used.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 79%

Section: ■ Materials and Methodssupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: ■ Materials and Methodssupporting

confidence: 45%

Section: ■ Materials and Methodsmentioning

confidence: 89%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Probing Legacy and Alternative Flame Retardants in the Air of Chinese Cities

Zhao

Tian

Zou

et al. 2021

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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“…In the bulk particle phase, the GM concentration of ∑ 8 NBFR was 27 pg m –3 (5.7–140 pg m –3 ), slightly higher than that in the gas phase (25 pg m –3 , 1.2–380 pg m –3 ). According to concentrations reported elsewhere (Table S5), the concentration of NBFRs in the Harbin atmosphere was at a medium level compared to that of other regions around the world and slightly lower than that of other major cities in China. ,− …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 80%

Approach to Predicting the Size-Dependent Inhalation Intake of Particulate Novel Brominated Flame Retardants

Zhang

et al. 2021

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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The risk of human exposure to particulate novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) in the atmosphere has received increasing attention from scientists and the public, but currently, there is no reliable approach to predict the intake of these compounds on the basis of their size distribution. Here, we develop a reliable approach to predict the size-dependent inhalation intake of particulate NBFRs, based on the gas/particle (G/P) partitioning behavior of the NBFRs. We analyzed the concentrations of eight NBFRs in 363 size-segregated particulate samples and 99 paired samples of gaseous and bulk particles. Using these data, we developed an equation to predict the G/P partitioning quotients of NBFRs in particles in different size ranges (K Pi ) based on particle size. This equation was then successfully applied to predict the size-dependent inhalation intake of particulate NBFRs in combination with an inhalation exposure model. This new approach provides the first demonstration of the effects of the temperature-dependent octanol–air partitioning coefficient (K OA) and total suspended particle concentration (TSP) on the intake of particulate NBFRs by inhalation. In an illustrative case where TSP = 100 μg m–3, inhalation intake of particulate NBFRs exceeded the intake of gaseous NBFRs when log K OA > 11.4.

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