Product screening for sources of halogenated flame retardants in Canadian house and office dust

Abbasi, Golnoush; Saini, Amandeep; Goosey, Emma; Diamond, Miriam L.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.12.028

Cited by 92 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 65 publications

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“…They attributed these differences to the addition to the upholstery fabric of “sizing” additives comprised of water‐soluble filler agents . This explanation is consistent with the hypothesis that sorption of polar chemicals can be related to the hygroscopicity of a fabric and the results of Saini et al . Morrison et al .…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 73%

“…BDE‐47 and BDE‐99 are the main congeners in the commercial penta‐BDE mixture which was used in flexible foam furniture, with lesser usage in electronic and electrical equipment . Numerous studies have reported higher levels of BDE‐47 and BDE‐99 than other congeners in air and dust, with the exception of BDE‐209 in dust, including the same homes as sampled here . BDE‐209 constituted 3%–10% of ∑ 14 PBDEs.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 65%

“…In addition to the influence of chemical properties of the sorbing chemical and fibers, the physical properties of the fibers can also influence sorption. For example, natural fibers such as cotton (cellulose) and wool (protein) tend to have large and irregular surface areas and a porous structure that favors entrapment of particles compared to synthetically derived and spun fibers such as polyester and rayon (rayon is synthetically spun cellulose) inter alia .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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From air to clothing: characterizing the accumulation of semi-volatile organic compounds to fabrics in indoor environments

et al. 2016

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Uptake kinetics of semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) present indoors, namely phthalates and halogenated flame retardants (HFRs), were characterized for cellulose-based cotton and rayon fabrics. Cotton and rayon showed similar accumulation of gas- and particle-phase SVOCs, when normalized to planar surface area. Accumulation was 3-10 times greater by rayon than cotton, when normalized to Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific surface area which suggests that cotton could have a longer linear uptake phase than rayon. Linear uptake rates of eight consistently detected HFRs over 56 days of 0.35-0.92 m /day.dm planar surface area and mass transfer coefficients of 1.5-3.8 m/h were statistically similar for cotton and rayon and similar to those for uptake to passive air sampling media. These results suggest air-side controlled uptake and that, on average, 2 m of clothing typically worn by a person would sequester the equivalent of the chemical content in 100 m of air per day. Distribution coefficients between fabric and air (K') ranged from 6.5 to 7.7 (log K') and were within the range of partition coefficients measured for selected phthalates as reported in the literature. The distribution coefficients were similar for low molecular weight HFRs, and up to two orders of magnitude lower than the equilibrium partition coefficients estimated using the COSMO-RS model. Based on the COSMO-RS model, time to reach 95% of equilibrium for PBDEs between fabric and gas-phase compounds ranged from 0.1 to >10 years for low to high molecular weight HFRs.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 73%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 65%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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From air to clothing: characterizing the accumulation of semi-volatile organic compounds to fabrics in indoor environments

et al. 2016

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“…These treated HFR-materials will remain in usage for decades, and may increase in abundance as more efficient building insulation is needed to further reduce the use of greenhouse gas emitting fossil fuels for heating. In addition, electronics products typically contain percent levels of flame retardants and also contribute to indoor exposures [42,43]. …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Indoor Exposure to Airborne Halogenated Flame Retardants: Influence of Airborne Particle Size

Guardia

Schreder²,

Uding³

et al. 2017

IJERPH

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Inhalation of halogenated flame-retardants (HFRs) released from consumer products is an important route of exposure. However, not all airborne HFRs are respirable, and thus interact with vascular membranes within the gas exchange (alveolar) region of the lung. HFRs associated with large (>4 µm), inhalable airborne particulates are trapped on the mucosal lining of the respiratory tract and then are expelled or swallowed. The latter may contribute to internal exposure via desorption from particles in the digestive tract. Exposures may also be underestimated if personal activities that re-suspend particles into the breathing zone are not taken into account. Here, samples were collected using personal air samplers, clipped to the participants’ shirt collars (n = 18). We observed that the larger, inhalable air particulates carried the bulk (>92%) of HFRs. HFRs detected included those removed from commerce (i.e., polybrominated diphenyl ethers (Penta-BDEs: BDE-47, -85, -100, -99, and -153)), their replacements; e.g., 2-ethylhexyl 2,3,4,5-tetrabromobenzoate (TBB or EH-TBB); bis(2-ethylhexyl) 3,4,5,6-tetrabromophthalate (TBPH or BEH-TEBP) and long-produced chlorinated organophosphate-FRs (ClOPFRs): tris(2-chloroethyl)phosphate (TCEP), tris(1-chloro-2-propyl)phosphate (TCPP or TCIPP), and tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl)phosphate (TDCPP or TDCIPP). Our findings suggest estimates relying on a single exposure route, i.e., alveolar gas exchange, may not accurately estimate HFR internal dosage, as they ignore contributions from larger inhalable particulates that enter the digestive tract. Consideration of the fate and bioavailability of these larger particulates resulted in higher dosage estimates for HFRs with log Koa < 12 (i.e., Penta-BDEs and ClOPFRs) and lower estimates for those with log Koa > 12 (i.e., TBB and TBPH) compared to the alveolar route exposure alone. Of those HFRs examined, the most significant effect was the lower estimate by 41% for TBPH. The bulk of TBPH uptake from inhaled particles was estimated to be through the digestive tract, with lower bioavailability. We compared inhalation exposure estimates to chronic oral reference doses (RfDs) established by several regulatory agencies. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) RfD levels for several HFRs are considered outdated; however, BDE-99 levels exceeded those suggested by the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) by up to 26 times. These findings indicate that contributions and bioavailability of respirable and inhalable airborne particulates should both be considered in future risk assessments.

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“…furniture, dust-loading, or FRs in carpet padding) was not evaluated (Dodson et al, 2012). FR levels found on product surface wipes have been associated with dust levels; however, only prominent electronic products found in the home were evaluated, and most of the relationships were observed among these products and plastic casings, such as televisions and computers (Abbasi et al, 2016). In one study, counts of baby products used in the home were correlated with urinary BDCIPP levels in infants, highlighting a possible link between product use and exposure (Hoffman et al, 2015a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Associations between flame retardant applications in furniture foam, house dust levels, and residents' serum levels

Hammel

Hoffman

Lorenzo

et al. 2017

Environment International

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Polyurethane foam (PUF) in upholstered furniture frequently is treated with flame retardant chemicals (FRs) to reduce its flammability and adhere to rigorous flammability standards. For decades, a commercial mixture of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) called PentaBDE was commonly applied to foam to fulfill these regulations; however, concerns over toxicity, bioaccumulation, and persistence led to a global phase-out in the mid-2000s. Although PentaBDE is still detected in older furniture, other FR compounds such as tris(1,3-dichloroisopropyl) phosphate (TDCIPP) and Firemaster® 550 (FM550) have been increasingly used as replacements. While biomonitoring studies suggest exposure is widespread, the primary sources of exposure are not clearly known. Here, we investigated the relationships between specific FR applications in furniture foam and human exposure. Paired samples of furniture foam, house dust and serum samples were collected from a cohort in North Carolina, USA and analyzed for FRs typically used in PUF. In general, the presence of a specific FR in the sofa of a home was associated with an increase in the concentration of that FR in house dust. For example, the presence of PentaBDE in sofas was associated with significantly higher levels of BDE-47, a major component of PentaBDE, in house dust (10β=6.4, p<0.001). A similar association was observed with a component of FM550, 2-ethylhexyl-2,3,4,5-tetrabromobenzoate (EH-TBB), with levels that were approximately 3 times higher in house dust when FM550 was identified in the sofa foam (p<0.01). These relationships were modified by dust loading rates in the living room and the ratio of sofa size to room size. Interestingly, levels of TDCIPP and tris(1-chloro-2-isopropyl) phosphate (TCIPP) were also higher in dust with detections in sofa foam; however, these associations were not statistically significant and may suggest there are other prominent sources of these compounds in the home. In addition, the presence of PentaBDE in sofa foam was associated with significantly higher levels of BDE-47 in serum (p<0.01). These results suggest that FR applications in sofas are likely major sources of exposure to these compounds in the home.

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Product screening for sources of halogenated flame retardants in Canadian house and office dust

Cited by 92 publications

References 65 publications

From air to clothing: characterizing the accumulation of semi-volatile organic compounds to fabrics in indoor environments

From air to clothing: characterizing the accumulation of semi-volatile organic compounds to fabrics in indoor environments

Human Indoor Exposure to Airborne Halogenated Flame Retardants: Influence of Airborne Particle Size

Associations between flame retardant applications in furniture foam, house dust levels, and residents' serum levels

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