Determination of polychlorinated biphenyls and polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans by pressurized liquid extraction and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry in street dust samples

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in street dust of Rio de Janeiro and Niterói, Brazil: Particle size distribution, sources and cancer risk assessment

Fifteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were analyzed in two fractions (<63μm and 63-850μm) of street dust samples collected in different urban areas of Rio de Janeiro and Niterói cities, Brazil. Individual PAH concentrations and total PAH concentrations (∑PAH) were evaluated considering geographic and particle size distributions, PAH source and cancer risk. In 53% of the samples, ∑PAH values were higher in the smallest particles than in the largest ones, whereas the inverse was true for 23.5% of the samples. In 23.5% of the samples, both classes of particles showed comparable ∑PAH. The highest ∑PAH concentrations were found in areas of limited air dispersion, resulting in PAH accumulation in street dust. The diagnostic ratios and principal component analysis (PCA) indicated a strong influence of pyrogenic sources on PAH concentration, mainly of vehicular emissions. The cancer risk levels for children and adults, for both particulate size fractions (<63μm and 63μm-850μm), were comparable for dermal contact and by ingestion, and ranged from 10^-8 to 10^-6, whereas in certain cases the cancer risk level for adults by dermal contact was 2 to 3 times larger than for children. The cancer risk levels via inhalation always ranged from 10^-13 to 10^-10, so this exposure pathway was almost 10⁴ less severe than through ingestion and dermal contact, and thus negligible.

Analysis of polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in particulate and oily films on impervious surfaces

During this study wipe sampling was applied to various impervious surfaces for the determination of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/PCDFs) area concentrations. To that end, a wipe sampling method based on solvent wetted cotton wipes was evaluated and transfer efficiencies of PCBs and PCDD/PCDFs in particulate films (PFs) and oily liquid films (OFs) during sampling were investigated. For PFs sufficient transfer efficiencies of low concentrated PCB and PCDD/PCDF congeners in 1g/m(2) spiking surrogate were achieved after the first wipe using n-hexane as wetting solvent. Transfer efficiencies for OFs were the highest in the first wipe if n-hexane or n-heptane were used rather than toluene. The spiking experiments of OFs showed a log-linear correlation between the number of wiping procedures and transfer efficiency which indicates that transfer efficiencies were constant in subsequent wipes. Furthermore, it was successfully demonstrated that pressurized liquid extraction is a suitable tool for the extraction of wipe samples. Finally, the feasibility of this wipe sampling method was demonstrated on various impervious surfaces of different origin, and concentration levels of PCBs and PCDD/PCDFs in wipe samples are discussed. Hereby, remarkably high ∑CB6 concentrations of up to 1400μg/m(2) (taken at a transformer recycling site) were detected.

Polychlorinated biphenyls, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in street dust of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

In this study the occurrence of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorinated dibenzodioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDDs/PCDFs) in street dust samples was investigated using pressurized liquid extraction and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. Street dust samples were taken from rural, urban, industrial and industrially influenced urban areas. PCB6 concentrations ranged from 5090±2200 μg/kg (average±standard error of mean) in dusts from industrial premises to 29±8.7 μg/kg in rural areas. Concentration ranges were for dioxin-like PCB toxicity equivalents (dl-PCB TEQ) from 362±164 ng/kg (industrial premises) to 6.5±1.8 ng/kg (rural areas), and for PCDD/PCDF TEQ from 503±448 ng/kg to 2.4±0.13 ng/kg, respectively. Area concentrations of PCB6 (0.040 μg/m2-22 μg/m2), dl-PCB TEQ (0.0038 ng/m2-2.6 ng/m2) and PCDD/PCDF TEQs (14 pg/m2-1980 pg/m2) were estimated. Furthermore, particle size related concentrations of PCBs and PCDD/PCDFs in street dusts were analysed showing throughout almost all samples a distinctive trend of increasing concentrations with decreasing particle sizes. Characterization of homologue patterns of PCBs and PCDDs/PCDFs in street dusts was performed showing a dependence of homologue patterns on different area types, especially for PCBs. It could be demonstrated that the analysis of concentrations in combination with specific homologue patterns of PCBs and PCDDs/PCDFs in street dust samples enables allocation of potential emission sources.