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Pietrogrande MC, Demaria G, Russo M. Determination of particulate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry after molecularly imprinted polymer extraction. J Environ Sci (China) 2023; 124:644-654. [PMID: 36182170 DOI: 10.1016/j.jes.2021.11.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Revised: 11/10/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
A solid phase extraction procedure (SPE) is described for the quantitative analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in atmospheric particulate matter (PM), as ubiquitous environmental pollutants routinely measured in air quality monitoring. A SPE cartridge was used based on a molecular imprinted polymer (MIP-SPE) properly tailored for selective retention of PAHs with 4 and more benzene fused rings. The performance of the clean-up procedure was evaluated with the specific concern of selective purification towards saturated hydrocarbons, which are the PM components mostly interfering GC analysis of target PAHs. Under optimized operative conditions, the MIP-SPE provided analyte recovery close to 95% for heavier PAHs, from benzo(α)pyrene to benzo(ghi)perylene, and close to 90% for four benzene rings PAHs, with good reproducibility (RSDs: 2.5%-5.9%). Otherwise, C17-C32n-alkanes were nearly completely removed. The proposed method was critically compared with Solid Phase Micro Extraction (SPME) using a polyacrylate fiber. Both methods were successfully applied to the analysis of ambient PM2.5 samples collected at an urban polluted site. Between the two procedures, the MIP-SPE provided the highest recovery (R% ≥ 93%) for PAHs with 5 and more benzene rings, but lower for lighter PAHs. In contrast, SPME showed a mean acceptable R% value (∼ 80%) for all the investigated PAHs, except for the heaviest PAHs in the most polluted samples (R%: 110%-138%), suggesting an incomplete purification from the interfering n-hydrocarbons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Chiara Pietrogrande
- Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agraricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, 44121 Ferrara, Italy.
| | - Giorgia Demaria
- Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agraricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
| | - Mara Russo
- Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agraricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
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Pietrogrande MC, Bacco D, Demaria G, Russo M, Scotto F, Trentini A. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their oxygenated derivatives in urban aerosol: levels, chemical profiles, and contribution to PM 2.5 oxidative potential. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2022; 29:54391-54406. [PMID: 35297001 PMCID: PMC9356935 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-16858-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 09/29/2021] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
The concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and quinones, a subgroup of oxygenated PAHs (oxy-PAHs), were measured in PM2.5 samples collected during warm (May-June 2019) and cold (February-March 2020) seasons in the city of Bologna, Italy. Total PAHs concentration was nearly double in winter (6.58 ± 1.03 ng m-3) compared with spring (3.16 ± 0.53 ng m-3), following the trend of the PM2.5 mass concentration. Molecular diagnostic ratios suggested that, together with traffic, biomass burning was the dominant emission source contributing to the peaks of concentration of PM2.5 registered in the cold season. Quinone level was constant in both seasons, being 1.44 ± 0.24 ng m-3, that may be related to the increased secondary formation during warm season, as confirmed by the higher Σoxy-PAHs/ΣPAHs ratio in spring than in winter. The oxidative potential (OP) of the PM2.5 samples was assessed using acellular dithiothreitol (DTT) and ascorbic acid (AA) assays. The obtained responses showed a strong seasonality, with higher volume-normalized (OPV) values in winter than in spring, i.e., OPVDTT: 0.32 ± 0.15 nmol min-1 m-3 vs. 0.08 ± 0.03 nmol min-1 m-3 and OPVAA: 0.72 ± 0.36 nmol min-1 m-3 vs. 0.28 ± 0.21 nmol min-1 m-3. Both OPVDTT and OPVAA responses were significantly associated with total PAHs, as a general descriptor of redox-active PAH derivatives, associated with co-emission from burning sources or secondary atmospheric oxidation of parent PAHs. Otherwise, only winter OPVDTT responses showed a significant correlation with total Ʃoxy-PAHs concentration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Chiara Pietrogrande
- Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19 - 44121, Ferrara, Italy.
| | - Dimitri Bacco
- Emilia Romagna Regional Agency for Prevention, Environment and Energy, ARPAE, Via Po 5 - 40139, Bologna, Italy
| | - Giorgia Demaria
- Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19 - 44121, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Mara Russo
- Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19 - 44121, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Fabiana Scotto
- Emilia Romagna Regional Agency for Prevention, Environment and Energy, ARPAE, Via Po 5 - 40139, Bologna, Italy
| | - Arianna Trentini
- Emilia Romagna Regional Agency for Prevention, Environment and Energy, ARPAE, Via Po 5 - 40139, Bologna, Italy
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Zhang M, Wang J, Zhao Q, Mishra V, Fan J, Sun Y. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and esophageal carcinoma in Handan-Xingtai district, North China: a preliminary study based on cancer risk assessment. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2020; 192:596. [PMID: 32827059 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-020-08499-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2020] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Extremely high risk of esophageal carcinoma (EC) occurs in Handan-Xingtai district of North China. In spite of various preventive measures and epidemiological investigations that have been conducted for years, incidence and mortality of EC are still in the highest level of China. The etiology of EC remains unclear in the region. Previous studies of our research group proposed that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that derived from numerous coal gangue dumps and atmospheric particulates were major contaminants in these regions. In consideration of mutagenic, teratogenic, and carcinogenic characteristics of PAHs, the authors hypothesized that severe exposure to PAHs could preform as a causative factor for EC. Therefore, four data sets documented in our previous studies were employed in this paper. To quantitatively evaluate the carcinogenic risk imposed by sixteen priority PAHs, incremental lifetime cancer risks (ILCRs) via three exposure pathways were calculated. The results showed that total ILCRs for adult group ranged from 2.08E-05 to 8.63E-02, with an average of 2.00E-02. Total ILCRs for childhood group ranged from 1.09E-05 to 4.48E-02, with an average of 1.04E-02. Total ILCR value of 94% samples exceeded 10-4, indicating a particularly high carcinogenic risk to local residents. Furthermore, ingestion and dermal contact conducted as principal pathways of exposing to PAHs for each population group, rather than inhalation. It can be speculated that severely exposing to PAHs may be a pathogenesis of EC in Handan-Xingtai district. The rigorous supervise and governance are imperative to avoid severe exposure to PAHs that derived from coal gangue dumps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Minmin Zhang
- College of Water Conservancy and Hydroelectric Power, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, 056038, China
- Key Laboratory of Resource Exploration Research of Hebei Province, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, 056038, China
| | - Jinxi Wang
- Key Laboratory of Resource Exploration Research of Hebei Province, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, 056038, China
| | - Qiaojing Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Resource Exploration Research of Hebei Province, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, 056038, China.
| | - Vivek Mishra
- College of Earth Science and Engineering, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, 056038, Hebei, China
| | - Jingsen Fan
- College of Earth Science and Engineering, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, 056038, Hebei, China
| | - Yuzhuang Sun
- Key Laboratory of Resource Exploration Research of Hebei Province, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, 056038, China.
- College of Earth Science and Engineering, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, 056038, Hebei, China.
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Loos M, Singer H. Nontargeted homologue series extraction from hyphenated high resolution mass spectrometry data. J Cheminform 2017; 9:12. [PMID: 28286574 PMCID: PMC5323340 DOI: 10.1186/s13321-017-0197-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2016] [Accepted: 02/08/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A large proportion of polar anthropogenic compounds routinely released into the environment comprises homologue series, i.e., sets of chemicals differing in a repeating chemical unit. Using analytical techniques such as liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS), these compounds are readily measurable as signal sets with characteristic differences in mass and typically retention time. However, and despite such distinct characteristics, no computational approach for the direct, simultaneous and untargeted detection of all such signal sets comprising both LC and HRMS information has to date been presented. RESULTS A fast two-staged approach has been developed to extract LC-HRMS signal patterns which can be indicative of homologous analytes. In a first stage, a k-d tree representation of picked LC-HRMS peaks is used to extract all feasible 3-tuples of peaks with restrictions in, e.g., mass defect differences. A second stage then recombines these 3-tuples to larger series tuples while ensuring smooth changes in their retention time characteristics. This unsupervised approach was evaluated for ten effluent samples from Swiss sewage treatment plants (STPs), in both positive and negative electrospray-ionization. CONCLUSIONS Beside recovering all continuous series of previously identified homologues, substantial fractions of nontargeted peaks could subsequently be assigned into very diverse peak series, although assignments were often not unique. The latter ambiguities were resolved by a self-organizing map technique and revealed both distinctive series meshing and rivaling combinatorial solutions in the presence of isobaric or gapped series peaks. When comparing STPs, several ubiquitous yet partially low-frequent series mass differences emerged and may prioritize future identification efforts. The presented algorithm is freely available as part of the R package nontarget and as a user-friendly web-interface at www.envihomolog.eawag.ch.Graphical AbstractSearch for systematic series indicative of homologous compounds is based on a partitioned representation of LC-HRMS signal characteristics. This nontargeted search first extracts series triplets in a nearest-neighbour walk and then recombines them to larger ones. For illustration, the two dimensions involving mass defect characteristics are represented by one only.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Loos
- Swiss Federal Institute for Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland.,Institute of Biogeochemistry and Pollutant Dynamics, ETH Zürich, Zurich, 8092 Switzerland
| | - Heinz Singer
- Swiss Federal Institute for Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), 8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland
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Romagnoli P, Balducci C, Cecinato A, L'Episcopo N, Gariazzo C, Gatto MP, Gordiani A, Gherardi M. Fine particulate-bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in vehicles in Rome, Italy. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2017; 24:3493-3505. [PMID: 27878483 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-016-8098-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2016] [Accepted: 11/11/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Urban commuters are exposed to elevated levels of air pollutants, especially in heavily polluted areas and traffic congested roads. In order to assess the contribution of commuting to citizens' exposure, measurements of fine particulate (PM2.5) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were carried out in cars, busses, and metro trains, within the LIFE+ EXPAH Project. Monitoring campaigns were performed in Rome, Italy, from April 2011 to August 2012. Inside the busses, the concentration of total PAHs ranged from 2.7 to 6.6 ng/m3 during the winter and from 0.34 to 1.51 ng/m3 in the summer. In cars, internal concentrations were in the range 2.2-7.3 and 0.46-0.82 ng/m3, respectively, in the 2-year time. Analogous differences between seasons were observed examining the benzo[a]pyrene-equivalent carcinogenicity. In the metro trains, total PAHs ranged from 1.19 to 2.35 ng/m3 and PM2.5 ranged from 17 to 31 μg/m3. The PM2.5 concentration in all transport modes ranged from 10 to 160 μg/m3 during the cold season and 15-48 μg/m3 during the warm time. The average inside-to-outside ratio (R I/O) was found to exceed 1.0 for PM2.5 only in busses, probably due to dust re-suspension caused by crowding and passenger activity. The molecular PAH signature suggests that vehicle emissions and biomass combustion were the major sources of commuters' exposure to these toxicants in Rome. According to linear regression analysis, the PAH concentrations inside the vehicles were linked to those detected outside. Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) were found between the in-vehicle locations and the urban pollution network stations, with higher PAH values detected, on the average, in these latter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paola Romagnoli
- National Research Council of Italy, Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research (CNR-IIA), Via Salaria km 29.3, Monterotondo, P.O. Box 10, 00015, Rome, Italy.
| | - Catia Balducci
- National Research Council of Italy, Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research (CNR-IIA), Via Salaria km 29.3, Monterotondo, P.O. Box 10, 00015, Rome, Italy
| | - Angelo Cecinato
- National Research Council of Italy, Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research (CNR-IIA), Via Salaria km 29.3, Monterotondo, P.O. Box 10, 00015, Rome, Italy
| | - Nunziata L'Episcopo
- Department of Occupational Hygiene, INAIL, Via F. Candida, Monte Porzio Catone, 00040, Rome, Italy
| | - Claudio Gariazzo
- Department of Occupational Hygiene, INAIL, Via F. Candida, Monte Porzio Catone, 00040, Rome, Italy
| | - Maria Pia Gatto
- Department of Occupational Hygiene, INAIL, Via F. Candida, Monte Porzio Catone, 00040, Rome, Italy
| | - Andrea Gordiani
- Department of Occupational Hygiene, INAIL, Via F. Candida, Monte Porzio Catone, 00040, Rome, Italy
| | - Monica Gherardi
- Department of Occupational Hygiene, INAIL, Via F. Candida, Monte Porzio Catone, 00040, Rome, Italy
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Pietrogrande MC, Bacco D, Ferrari S, Ricciardelli I, Scotto F, Trentini A, Visentin M. Characteristics and major sources of carbonaceous aerosols in PM2.5 in Emilia Romagna Region (Northern Italy) from four-year observations. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2016; 553:172-183. [PMID: 26925729 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.02.074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2015] [Revised: 02/08/2016] [Accepted: 02/11/2016] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
The concentrations of organic and elemental carbon in PM2.5 aerosol samples were measured in two sites of Emilia Romagna (Po Valley, Northern Italy) in eight campaigns during different seasons from 2011 to 2014. Strong seasonality was observed with the highest OC concentrations during the cold periods (≈ 5.5 μg m(-3)) and the lowest in the warm months (≈ 2.7 μg m(-3)) as well as with higher EC levels in fall/winter (≈ 1.4 μg m(-3)) in comparison with spring/summer (≈ 0.6 μg m(-3)). Concerning spatial variability, there were no statistically significant difference (p<0.05) between OC concentrations at the two sampling sites in each campaign, while the EC values were nearly twofold higher levels at the urban site than those at the rural one. Specific molecular markers were investigated to attempt the basic apportionment of OC by discriminating between the main emission sources of primary OC, such as fossil fuels burning - including traffic vehicle emission - residential wood burning, and bio-aerosol released from plants and microorganisms, and the atmospheric photo-oxidation processes generating OCsec. The investigated markers were low-molecular-weight carboxylic acids - to describe the contribution of secondary organic aerosol - anhydrosugars - to quantify primary emissions from biomass burning - bio-sugars - to qualitatively estimate biogenic sources - and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons - to differentiate among different combustion emissions. Using the levoglucosan tracer method, contribution of wood smoke to atmospheric OC concentration was computed. Wood burning accounts for 33% of OC in fall/winter and for 3% in spring/summer. A clear seasonal trend is also observed for the impact of secondary processes with higher contribution in the warm seasons (≈ 63%) in comparison with that in colder months (≈ 33%), that is consistent with enhanced solar radiation in spring/summer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Chiara Pietrogrande
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, I-44100 Ferrara, Italy.
| | - Dimitri Bacco
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, I-44100 Ferrara, Italy; Regional Agency for Prevention and Environment-ARPA, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
| | - Silvia Ferrari
- Regional Agency for Prevention and Environment-ARPA, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
| | | | - Fabiana Scotto
- Regional Agency for Prevention and Environment-ARPA, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
| | - Arianna Trentini
- Regional Agency for Prevention and Environment-ARPA, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
| | - Marco Visentin
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, I-44100 Ferrara, Italy
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Xue SW, Tang MQ, Xu L, Shi ZG. Magnetic nanoparticles with hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity for solid-phase extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from environmental water samples. J Chromatogr A 2015; 1411:9-16. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chroma.2015.07.104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2015] [Revised: 07/28/2015] [Accepted: 07/31/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Bortey-Sam N, Ikenaka Y, Akoto O, Nakayama SMM, Yohannes YB, Baidoo E, Mizukawa H, Ishizuka M. Levels, potential sources and human health risk of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in particulate matter (PM(10)) in Kumasi, Ghana. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2015; 22:9658-67. [PMID: 25616380 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-014-4022-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2014] [Accepted: 12/17/2014] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
Airborne particulate samples were collected on quartz filters to determine the concentrations, sources and health risks of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in air in Kumasi, Ghana. A total of 32 air samples were collected in Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) campus (pristine site) and city centre (CC). Samples were extracted with 1:2 v/v acetone/hexane mixture prior to GC-MS analyses. The sum of concentrations of 17 PAHs in air ranged from 0.51 to 16 (KNUST) and 19-38 ng/m(3) (CC). The concentration of benzo[a]pyrene, BaP, ranged from below detection limit to 0.08 ng/m(3) (KNUST) and 1.6 to 5.6 ng/m(3) (CC). Chemical mass balance model showed that PAHs in air in Kumasi were mainly from fuel combustion. The total BaP equivalent concentration (BaPeq) in CC was 18 times higher compared to KNUST; based on the European Legislation and Swedish and UK Standards for BaP in air, CC could be classified as highly polluted. Estimated carcinogenicity of PAHs in terms of BaPeq indicated that BaP was the principal PAH contributor in CC (70%). Health risk to adults and children associated with PAH inhalation was assessed by taking into account the lifetime average daily dose and corresponding incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR). The ILCR was within the acceptable range (10(-6) to 10(-4)), indicating low health risk to residents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nesta Bortey-Sam
- Laboratory of Toxicology, Department of Environmental Veterinary Sciences, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Kita 18, Nishi 9, Kita-ku, Sapporo, 060-0818, Japan
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