Relationships between Outdoor and Personal Exposure of Carbonaceous Species and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) at Hong Kong

Abstract

Personal and ambient fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) samples were simultaneously collected at Hong Kong during winter in 2014. Mass concentration, organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) relationships were analyzed. The correlations of personal and ambient concentrations of PM 2.5 , OC, and EC indicated the ambient concentrations were the factors showing influences on the personal exposures. Personal to ambient (P/A) ratios in PM 2.5 , OC, and EC were all > 1, suggesting influences between indoor sources and/or personal activities. Significant higher ambient ΣPAHs concentrations with P/A ratios were nevertheless < 1. The Σ15 U.S. EPA priority PAHs accounted for 50.6% and 70.8% of ΣPAHs in personal and ambient samples, respectively. The ratios of indicator compounds confirmed the origin of PAHs in personal PM 2.5 , which were found to be associated predominantly with traffic emissions and the influence by the indoor sources.

Difference in ambient-personal exposure to PM2.5 and its inflammatory effect in local residents in urban and peri-urban Beijing, China: results of the AIRLESS project

“…The quantification of the personal PM 2.5 exposure and ambient PM 2.5 concentration at the same time has been investigated in many studies. 13,15,16,[25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36] In most of the European and American cities where mean ambient PM 2.5 concentration <35 μg m −3 , personal exposure to PM 2.5 was generally higher than ambient levels, with P/A ratios varying from 1.2 to 4.2. 13,16,25,27,31,33,34 By contrast, the studies carried out in highly polluted areas (e.g.…”

Spatio-seasonal Concentrations, Source Apportionment and Assessment of Associated Human Health Risks of PM2.5-bound Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Delhi, India

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Gas- and Water-Phase PAHs Emitted from a Single Hydrogen-Oxygen PEM Fuel Cell

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