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Bekbulat B, Agrawal P, Allen RW, Baum M, Boldbaatar B, Clark LP, Galsuren J, Hystad P, L’Orange C, Vakacherla S, Volckens J, Marshall JD. Application of an Ultra-Low-Cost Passive Sampler for Light-Absorbing Carbon in Mongolia. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 23:8977. [PMID: 37960676 PMCID: PMC10647794 DOI: 10.3390/s23218977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2023] [Revised: 10/29/2023] [Accepted: 11/02/2023] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Low-cost, long-term measures of air pollution concentrations are often needed for epidemiological studies and policy analyses of household air pollution. The Washington passive sampler (WPS), an ultra-low-cost method for measuring the long-term average levels of light-absorbing carbon (LAC) air pollution, uses digital images to measure the changes in the reflectance of a passively exposed paper filter. A prior publication on WPS reported high precision and reproducibility. Here, we deployed three methods to each of 10 households in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia: one PurpleAir for PM2.5; two ultrasonic personal aerosol samplers (UPAS) with quartz filters for the thermal-optical analysis of elemental carbon (EC); and two WPS for LAC. We compared multiple rounds of 4-week-average measurements. The analyses calibrating the LAC to the elemental carbon measurement suggest that 1 µg of EC/m3 corresponds to 62 PI/month (R2 = 0.83). The EC-LAC calibration curve indicates an accuracy (root-mean-square error) of 3.1 µg of EC/m3, or ~21% of the average elemental carbon concentration. The RMSE values observed here for the WPS are comparable to the reported accuracy levels for other methods, including reference methods. Based on the precision and accuracy results shown here, as well as the increased simplicity of deployment, the WPS may merit further consideration for studying air quality in homes that use solid fuels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bujin Bekbulat
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; (B.B.); (L.P.C.)
| | - Pratyush Agrawal
- Center for Study of Science, Technology & Policy, Bengaluru 560095, Karnataka, India; (P.A.); (S.V.)
| | - Ryan W. Allen
- Department of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6, Canada;
| | | | - Buyantushig Boldbaatar
- School of Public Health, Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences, Ulaanbaatar 14210, Mongolia; (B.B.); (J.G.)
| | - Lara P. Clark
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; (B.B.); (L.P.C.)
| | - Jargalsaikhan Galsuren
- School of Public Health, Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences, Ulaanbaatar 14210, Mongolia; (B.B.); (J.G.)
| | - Perry Hystad
- Department of Public Health and Human Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA;
| | - Christian L’Orange
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA; (C.L.); (J.V.)
| | - Sreekanth Vakacherla
- Center for Study of Science, Technology & Policy, Bengaluru 560095, Karnataka, India; (P.A.); (S.V.)
| | - John Volckens
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA; (C.L.); (J.V.)
| | - Julian D. Marshall
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; (B.B.); (L.P.C.)
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Vilcassim R, Thurston GD. Gaps and future directions in research on health effects of air pollution. EBioMedicine 2023; 93:104668. [PMID: 37357089 PMCID: PMC10363432 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2023.104668] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Revised: 05/03/2023] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 06/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite progress in many countries, air pollution, and especially fine particulate matter air pollution (PM2.5) remains a global health threat: over 6 million premature cardiovascular and respiratory deaths/yr. have been attributed to household and outdoor air pollution. In this viewpoint, we identify present gaps in air pollution monitoring and regulation, and how they could be strengthened in future mitigation policies to more optimally reduce health impacts. We conclude that there is a need to move beyond simply regulating PM2.5 particulate matter mass concentrations at central site stations. A greater emphasis is needed on: new portable and affordable technologies to measure personal exposures to particle mass; the consideration of a submicron (PM1) mass air quality standard; and further evaluations of effects by particle composition and source. We emphasize the need to enable further studies on exposure-health relationships in underserved populations that are disproportionately impacted by air pollution, but not sufficiently represented in current studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruzmyn Vilcassim
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, School of Public Health, USA.
| | - George D Thurston
- Departments of Medicine and Population Health, New York University School of Medicine, USA
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