Trace Metal Content and Health Risk Assessment of PM10 in an Urban Environment of León, Mexico

Abstract

Trace metal concentrations in PM10 were measured in an urban–industrial site in León, Mexico in three different seasons. PM10 were collected in quartz fiber filters of 47 mm diameter using low volume equipment operating with a controlled flow of 5 L min−1 over 24 h. Mass concentrations were gravimetrically determined and it was found that PM10 samples showed values in excess of the Mexican standard and the established values by WHO during cold dry and warm dry seasons. Morphology of selected particles was studied by SEM-EDS analysis, and the elemental composition was determined. Collected samples were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrometry in order to quantify ambient air concentrations of some trace metals (Cu, Co, Zn, Cd, Fe, Mg, and Mn). Median concentrations of trace metals showed the maximum value for iron (3.079 μgm−3) and the minimum value for Cd (0.050 μgm−3) over the entire period. From the meteorological analysis, it was found that sources located SW and ESE of the sampling site contributed to the levels of trace metals in PM10 in the studied site. The health risk assessment found that the population of León is at increased lifetime risk of experiencing cancer because of exposure to these concentrations of PM10 and their trace metal content.

Multi-isotope signatures (Cu, Zn, Pb) of different particle sizes in road-deposited sediments: a case study from industrial area

“…Road-deposited sediments in urban environments are highly polluted with Cu, Zn, and Pb due to traffic-related activities, such as tire, and brake pad wear and engine emissions (Adamiec et al 2016;Amato et al 2011;Iijima et al 2007;Jeong et al 2020a;Lanzerstorfer 2020). They are a major source of metal pollution in surrounding atmospheric particles, roadside soils, and stream sediments, as they can be readily transported into aquatic and atmospheric environments by stormwater runoff and resuspension by the wind (Bretón et al 2019;Jeong et al 2020b;Khalid et al 2018;Nawrot et al 2020;Popoola et al 2017;Wang and Zhang 2018). Heavy metal concentrations such as Cu, Zn, and Pb in RDS have been used as tracers to identify metal pollution associated with traffic activities, but they are of limited use in discerning the exact source of pollution for each metal (Amato et al 2009(Amato et al , 2011(Amato et al , 2020cBourotte et al 2019;Hwang et al 2016;Jeong et al 2020a).…”

Potentially Toxic Elements (PTEs) Composition and Human Health Risk Assessment of PM10 on the Roadways of Industrial Complexes in South Korea

“…Improved analytical technology and focused recent research have proven that the primary source of PTEs on the road is vehicle activities [12,[47][48][49]. There are higher PTE concentrations in the finer particles of RDS [50], and traffic activities can serve air quality adverse effects with suspend-able RDS [51]. Therefore, to protect the actual impact on human health from industrialization and consequent increase in roads and vehicles, it is essential to study RDS for particles with an upper size limit (USL) of 10 μm [51,52].…”

“…There are higher PTE concentrations in the finer particles of RDS [50], and traffic activities can serve air quality adverse effects with suspend-able RDS [51]. Therefore, to protect the actual impact on human health from industrialization and consequent increase in roads and vehicles, it is essential to study RDS for particles with an upper size limit (USL) of 10 μm [51,52]. Even though public health risk assessment using RDS has been actively carried out for a decade, there are still few reports from studies on PM of RDS as shown in Table 1.…”