Fine Particulate Matter from Ship Emissions in the Port of Rijeka, Croatia

The impact of ship emissions on air pollution in harbours is probably one of the lesser-understood aspects of anthropogenic pollution. Vessels are often powered by relatively old engines and at the same time quality of fuels is often questionable. These factors have potential to significant increase air pollution in busy harbours. It is well know that V/Ni ratio higher than 2.5 are good indicators of heavy oil combustion from the ship engines. To evaluate this contribution to the air pollution in the harbour of Rijeka we measured concentrations of V and Ni in fine aerosols (PM2.5). Over the 300 fine aerosol samples were collected during the three years period (February 2012 – June 2015) and analyzed by two analytical techniques; X-ray Fluorescence and Laser Integrated Plate Method at the Laboratory for Elemental-Micro Analysis (Department of Physics University of Rijeka). Concentrations of 18 elements (Si to Pb) were obtained as well as the black carbon (BC) component. The results were statistically evaluated by means of the positive matrix factorization. In nearly 15% of samples, concentration ratio (V/Ni) was found to be around 3 indicating that during those days the source that we named “ship emission” was present in fine aerosol pollution with major components such as S, BC and traces K, V, Fe, Cl, Br, Pb and Ni. This anthropogenic source represented approximately 10% from the total fine aerosol mass

Elemental analysis of particulate matter in metal workshops and of biological samples from exposed workers

Lebdeće čestice koje nastaju procesima obrade metala često postižu vrlo visoke koncentracije, a u svom sastavu imaju značajne količine teških metala koji mogu negativno utjecati na zdravlje radnika koji su im izloženi. Cilj ovog rada je utvrditi postoji li kod radnika u radionicama za obradu metala povećano opterećenje metalima u radnom prostoru i u biološkom materijalu uzetom od ispitanika (kosa i nokti) te po potrebi dati smjernice i preporuke za provođenje preventivnih mjera vezanih uz opterećenje metalima. Kako bi se procijenila izloženost lebdećim česticama radnika u radionicama za obradu metala, prikupljeni su uzorci finih lebdećih čestica (PM2,5) u šest radionica za obradu metala te u dva kontrolna prostora. U svakoj radionici uzorci su prikupljani na teflonskim filtrima tijekom tri radna dana, a u većini prostora prikupljani su i podaci optičkim brojačem čestica tijekom desetak dana. Elementna analiza uzoraka provedena je tehnikama XRF i PIXE, dok su ukupne koncentracije PM2,5 određene gravimetrijski. Kao prvi korak u procjeni mogućeg utjecaja lebdećih čestica na zdravlje radnika, prikupljeni su uzorci kose i noktiju 68 osoba, od kojih su 34 izložena radnika te 34 pripadnika kontrolne skupine. Na biološkim uzorcima je izvršena elementna analiza tehnikom ICP-MS, čime su određene koncentracije 12 elemenata. Koncentracije PM2,5 u radionicama za obradu čelika dosezale su do 2900 µg/m3, dok je Fe sačinjavalo oko 50 % ukupne mase čestica. U radionicama za obradu aluminija koncentracije PM2,5 su dosezale do 300 µg/m3, a procjenjuje se da su najzastupljenije bile čestice iz vanjskih izvora. U kontrolnim prostorima koncentracije PM2,5 nisu prelazile 9 µg/m3. Koncentracije Al, Ti, Mn, Fe i Pb u kosi radnika koji obrađuju čelik značajno su veće od koncentracija tih elemenata u kosi kontrolne skupine, dok uzorci kose radnika iz radionica za obradu aluminija nisu značajno različiti od kontrolnih uzoraka. U noktiju radnika izmjerene su značajno veće koncentracije Ti, Mn i Fe nego u noktima iz kontrolne skupine. U biološkim uzorcima radnika zabilježeno je deponiranje metala iako se koncentracije lebdećih čestica nisu ni približile graničnim vrijednostima propisanih regulativom. Potrebno je provesti dodatna istraživanja kojima bi se utvrdilo ukazuje li ovo deponiranje na zdravlje radnika te po potrebi izmijeniti regulativu.Particulate matter (PM) is a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets suspended in the atmosphere and it stands as one of the most important air pollutants. Its fine fraction, PM2.5, which consists of particles less than 2.5 µm in diameter, is of special interest because it can easily enter human respiratory system and therefore can have adverse impact on human health. Many studies have been conducted to monitor PM outdoors, but since people spend most of their time indoors, it is especially important to monitor indoor pollution, both in homes and workplaces. Metal processing techniques such as welding, cutting, grinding, and polishing produce significant levels of PM in metal workshops. PM from these sources, especially from welding, is typically less than 2.5 µm in diameter, often even less than 1 µm in diameter, so it can easily enter human respiratory system. Moreover, it is rich with heavy metal components such as Mn and Zn, which can cause specific health problems such as manganism. It is, therefore, very important to monitor PM levels in metal workshops, but also to monitor health status of the workers exposed to high levels of PM. The aim of this study is to determine whether the exposure to metals of the workers in metal workshops in Croatia is elevated by evaluating the exposure to metals in particulate matter and by biological monitoring. This can possibly lead to new regulations in this area. In order to estimate the levels of exposure to PM, six metal workshops in the vicinity of the city of Rijeka, Croatia, were chosen to participate in the study. Two of them are dealing with the aluminium components and four of them are mainly dealing with the steel and stainless steel components. Three of the workshops (including aluminium workshops) are rather small, with the area of about 200 m2 , and the other three are located in bigger halls, with the area of 400 m2 or more. In the first workshop, two sampling campaigns were performed. In the first one, the PM2.5 samples were collected in a store-room. 12-h samples were taken through 13 days, so that the samples represent daily and weekly changes in PM2.5 levels. In the second campaign, the sampling was performed in the main working room and samples were taken at finer time resolution. During the working time, 1-h samples were taken and one single 12-h sample was taken during the rest of the day. The sampling was performed during three working days. Similar sampling regime was performed in other workshops. During the working time, 1-h or 2-h samples were taken, and during the non-working time 4-h or 8-h samples were taken. The sampling lasted for three working days in each workshop. Additional sampling with an optical particle counter was performed in most of the workshops, during about ten days at each. Additional sapling was performed at two control workplaces: one laboratory and one office at the University of Rijeka. Three consecutive 8-h samples of PM2.5 were taken in each workplace, while the optical particle counter was used over longer period of time. The samples of PM2.5 were collected on thin polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon) filters with a cyclone sampler. Overall, 234 samples were collected on the filters, including 134 hourly samples, 26 2-h samples, 29 4-h samples, 15 8-h samples and 30 12-h samples. Mass concentrations were obtained gravimetrically and elemental analysis was performed with X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) techniques. Concentrations of Na, Mg, Al, Si, P, S, Cl, K, Ca, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb and Bi were obtained. Additionally, an optical particle counter measured PM concentrations of 6 different fractions from 0.3 to 10 µm in diameter. About 1800 h of data were collected in this way. As a first step to estimate possible health impacts of PM, biological samples were taken from 34 workers who agreed to participate in the study. Samples of hair were analysed from 30 workers from all the workshops included in the study, while 8 samples of nails were analysed from the workers from the first workshop. Additionally, 34 unexposed persons were included in the control group, from which 32 hair samples and 9 nail samples were analysed. Elemental analysis of biological samples was performed with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) and concentrations of Al, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb were determined. In most of the workshops, PM2.5 and elemental concentrations showed a pattern clearly connected to the working activities. The highest concentrations of almost all elements were obtained for the first workshop, during the second sampling campaign. Hourly PM2.5 concentrations in this period were up to 2900 µg/m3 , while Mn and Fe hourly concentrations were up to 45 and 1400 µg/m3 , respectively. In this and other steel workshops, Fe was a predominant element, making up to 50 % of total mass. Mn was one of the most recognizable elements, being one of the main components of welding electrodes. In the aluminium workshops, the total concentrations were much lower and with much different elemental compositions. In the second workshop, the maximum hourly PM2.5 concentration was 300 µg/m3 , while in the third workshop the maximum PM2.5 concentration was only 38 µg/m3 . As expected, Fe was not the predominant element, but neither was Al, because aluminium parts were neither welded nor heated in any other way that could produce fine particles. Much lower PM2.5 concentrations were measured in control workplaces, where the maximum PM2.5 concentration was only 9 µg/m3 . Concentrations and composition of PM2.5 in control workplaces were comparable to the data obtained previously in the outdoor air in the Rijeka city centre. In the hair samples, significantly higher concentrations of Al, Ti, Mn, Fe and Pb were measured in samples of workers in steel workshops than in the control samples. The highest concentrations of these metals were found for samples of workers from the first, fourth and fifth workshop, were the highest PM2.5 concentrations were measured as well. Although a very small number of nail samples was analysed, higher concentrations of Ti, Mn and Fe in the samples of workers are clearly visible. This indicates that these metals were deposited in analyzed tissues after being inhaled as particulate matter. It should be further investigated if these metals are deposited in other tissues and organs, such as liver or brain and whether that causes health problems. The results of this investigation show that deposition of metals in tissues of workers occurs even under PM concentrations that are far below limit values. For possible revision of current limit values it is necessary to carry on with further research wchich would investigate health status of the workers

Elemental analysis of particulate matter in metal workshops and of biological samples from exposed workers

Lebdeće čestice koje nastaju procesima obrade metala često postižu vrlo visoke koncentracije, a u svom sastavu imaju značajne količine teških metala koji mogu negativno utjecati na zdravlje radnika koji su im izloženi. Cilj ovog rada je utvrditi postoji li kod radnika u radionicama za obradu metala povećano opterećenje metalima u radnom prostoru i u biološkom materijalu uzetom od ispitanika (kosa i nokti) te po potrebi dati smjernice i preporuke za provođenje preventivnih mjera vezanih uz opterećenje metalima. Kako bi se procijenila izloženost lebdećim česticama radnika u radionicama za obradu metala, prikupljeni su uzorci finih lebdećih čestica (PM2,5) u šest radionica za obradu metala te u dva kontrolna prostora. U svakoj radionici uzorci su prikupljani na teflonskim filtrima tijekom tri radna dana, a u većini prostora prikupljani su i podaci optičkim brojačem čestica tijekom desetak dana. Elementna analiza uzoraka provedena je tehnikama XRF i PIXE, dok su ukupne koncentracije PM2,5 određene gravimetrijski. Kao prvi korak u procjeni mogućeg utjecaja lebdećih čestica na zdravlje radnika, prikupljeni su uzorci kose i noktiju 68 osoba, od kojih su 34 izložena radnika te 34 pripadnika kontrolne skupine. Na biološkim uzorcima je izvršena elementna analiza tehnikom ICP-MS, čime su određene koncentracije 12 elemenata. Koncentracije PM2,5 u radionicama za obradu čelika dosezale su do 2900 µg/m3, dok je Fe sačinjavalo oko 50 % ukupne mase čestica. U radionicama za obradu aluminija koncentracije PM2,5 su dosezale do 300 µg/m3, a procjenjuje se da su najzastupljenije bile čestice iz vanjskih izvora. U kontrolnim prostorima koncentracije PM2,5 nisu prelazile 9 µg/m3. Koncentracije Al, Ti, Mn, Fe i Pb u kosi radnika koji obrađuju čelik značajno su veće od koncentracija tih elemenata u kosi kontrolne skupine, dok uzorci kose radnika iz radionica za obradu aluminija nisu značajno različiti od kontrolnih uzoraka. U noktiju radnika izmjerene su značajno veće koncentracije Ti, Mn i Fe nego u noktima iz kontrolne skupine. U biološkim uzorcima radnika zabilježeno je deponiranje metala iako se koncentracije lebdećih čestica nisu ni približile graničnim vrijednostima propisanih regulativom. Potrebno je provesti dodatna istraživanja kojima bi se utvrdilo ukazuje li ovo deponiranje na zdravlje radnika te po potrebi izmijeniti regulativu.Particulate matter (PM) is a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets suspended in the atmosphere and it stands as one of the most important air pollutants. Its fine fraction, PM2.5, which consists of particles less than 2.5 µm in diameter, is of special interest because it can easily enter human respiratory system and therefore can have adverse impact on human health. Many studies have been conducted to monitor PM outdoors, but since people spend most of their time indoors, it is especially important to monitor indoor pollution, both in homes and workplaces. Metal processing techniques such as welding, cutting, grinding, and polishing produce significant levels of PM in metal workshops. PM from these sources, especially from welding, is typically less than 2.5 µm in diameter, often even less than 1 µm in diameter, so it can easily enter human respiratory system. Moreover, it is rich with heavy metal components such as Mn and Zn, which can cause specific health problems such as manganism. It is, therefore, very important to monitor PM levels in metal workshops, but also to monitor health status of the workers exposed to high levels of PM. The aim of this study is to determine whether the exposure to metals of the workers in metal workshops in Croatia is elevated by evaluating the exposure to metals in particulate matter and by biological monitoring. This can possibly lead to new regulations in this area. In order to estimate the levels of exposure to PM, six metal workshops in the vicinity of the city of Rijeka, Croatia, were chosen to participate in the study. Two of them are dealing with the aluminium components and four of them are mainly dealing with the steel and stainless steel components. Three of the workshops (including aluminium workshops) are rather small, with the area of about 200 m2 , and the other three are located in bigger halls, with the area of 400 m2 or more. In the first workshop, two sampling campaigns were performed. In the first one, the PM2.5 samples were collected in a store-room. 12-h samples were taken through 13 days, so that the samples represent daily and weekly changes in PM2.5 levels. In the second campaign, the sampling was performed in the main working room and samples were taken at finer time resolution. During the working time, 1-h samples were taken and one single 12-h sample was taken during the rest of the day. The sampling was performed during three working days. Similar sampling regime was performed in other workshops. During the working time, 1-h or 2-h samples were taken, and during the non-working time 4-h or 8-h samples were taken. The sampling lasted for three working days in each workshop. Additional sampling with an optical particle counter was performed in most of the workshops, during about ten days at each. Additional sapling was performed at two control workplaces: one laboratory and one office at the University of Rijeka. Three consecutive 8-h samples of PM2.5 were taken in each workplace, while the optical particle counter was used over longer period of time. The samples of PM2.5 were collected on thin polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon) filters with a cyclone sampler. Overall, 234 samples were collected on the filters, including 134 hourly samples, 26 2-h samples, 29 4-h samples, 15 8-h samples and 30 12-h samples. Mass concentrations were obtained gravimetrically and elemental analysis was performed with X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) techniques. Concentrations of Na, Mg, Al, Si, P, S, Cl, K, Ca, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb and Bi were obtained. Additionally, an optical particle counter measured PM concentrations of 6 different fractions from 0.3 to 10 µm in diameter. About 1800 h of data were collected in this way. As a first step to estimate possible health impacts of PM, biological samples were taken from 34 workers who agreed to participate in the study. Samples of hair were analysed from 30 workers from all the workshops included in the study, while 8 samples of nails were analysed from the workers from the first workshop. Additionally, 34 unexposed persons were included in the control group, from which 32 hair samples and 9 nail samples were analysed. Elemental analysis of biological samples was performed with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) and concentrations of Al, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb were determined. In most of the workshops, PM2.5 and elemental concentrations showed a pattern clearly connected to the working activities. The highest concentrations of almost all elements were obtained for the first workshop, during the second sampling campaign. Hourly PM2.5 concentrations in this period were up to 2900 µg/m3 , while Mn and Fe hourly concentrations were up to 45 and 1400 µg/m3 , respectively. In this and other steel workshops, Fe was a predominant element, making up to 50 % of total mass. Mn was one of the most recognizable elements, being one of the main components of welding electrodes. In the aluminium workshops, the total concentrations were much lower and with much different elemental compositions. In the second workshop, the maximum hourly PM2.5 concentration was 300 µg/m3 , while in the third workshop the maximum PM2.5 concentration was only 38 µg/m3 . As expected, Fe was not the predominant element, but neither was Al, because aluminium parts were neither welded nor heated in any other way that could produce fine particles. Much lower PM2.5 concentrations were measured in control workplaces, where the maximum PM2.5 concentration was only 9 µg/m3 . Concentrations and composition of PM2.5 in control workplaces were comparable to the data obtained previously in the outdoor air in the Rijeka city centre. In the hair samples, significantly higher concentrations of Al, Ti, Mn, Fe and Pb were measured in samples of workers in steel workshops than in the control samples. The highest concentrations of these metals were found for samples of workers from the first, fourth and fifth workshop, were the highest PM2.5 concentrations were measured as well. Although a very small number of nail samples was analysed, higher concentrations of Ti, Mn and Fe in the samples of workers are clearly visible. This indicates that these metals were deposited in analyzed tissues after being inhaled as particulate matter. It should be further investigated if these metals are deposited in other tissues and organs, such as liver or brain and whether that causes health problems. The results of this investigation show that deposition of metals in tissues of workers occurs even under PM concentrations that are far below limit values. For possible revision of current limit values it is necessary to carry on with further research wchich would investigate health status of the workers

Elemental analysis of particulate matter in metal workshops and of biological samples from exposed workers

Lebdeće čestice koje nastaju procesima obrade metala često postižu vrlo visoke koncentracije, a u svom sastavu imaju značajne količine teških metala koji mogu negativno utjecati na zdravlje radnika koji su im izloženi. Cilj ovog rada je utvrditi postoji li kod radnika u radionicama za obradu metala povećano opterećenje metalima u radnom prostoru i u biološkom materijalu uzetom od ispitanika (kosa i nokti) te po potrebi dati smjernice i preporuke za provođenje preventivnih mjera vezanih uz opterećenje metalima. Kako bi se procijenila izloženost lebdećim česticama radnika u radionicama za obradu metala, prikupljeni su uzorci finih lebdećih čestica (PM2,5) u šest radionica za obradu metala te u dva kontrolna prostora. U svakoj radionici uzorci su prikupljani na teflonskim filtrima tijekom tri radna dana, a u većini prostora prikupljani su i podaci optičkim brojačem čestica tijekom desetak dana. Elementna analiza uzoraka provedena je tehnikama XRF i PIXE, dok su ukupne koncentracije PM2,5 određene gravimetrijski. Kao prvi korak u procjeni mogućeg utjecaja lebdećih čestica na zdravlje radnika, prikupljeni su uzorci kose i noktiju 68 osoba, od kojih su 34 izložena radnika te 34 pripadnika kontrolne skupine. Na biološkim uzorcima je izvršena elementna analiza tehnikom ICP-MS, čime su određene koncentracije 12 elemenata. Koncentracije PM2,5 u radionicama za obradu čelika dosezale su do 2900 µg/m3, dok je Fe sačinjavalo oko 50 % ukupne mase čestica. U radionicama za obradu aluminija koncentracije PM2,5 su dosezale do 300 µg/m3, a procjenjuje se da su najzastupljenije bile čestice iz vanjskih izvora. U kontrolnim prostorima koncentracije PM2,5 nisu prelazile 9 µg/m3. Koncentracije Al, Ti, Mn, Fe i Pb u kosi radnika koji obrađuju čelik značajno su veće od koncentracija tih elemenata u kosi kontrolne skupine, dok uzorci kose radnika iz radionica za obradu aluminija nisu značajno različiti od kontrolnih uzoraka. U noktiju radnika izmjerene su značajno veće koncentracije Ti, Mn i Fe nego u noktima iz kontrolne skupine. U biološkim uzorcima radnika zabilježeno je deponiranje metala iako se koncentracije lebdećih čestica nisu ni približile graničnim vrijednostima propisanih regulativom. Potrebno je provesti dodatna istraživanja kojima bi se utvrdilo ukazuje li ovo deponiranje na zdravlje radnika te po potrebi izmijeniti regulativu.Particulate matter (PM) is a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets suspended in the atmosphere and it stands as one of the most important air pollutants. Its fine fraction, PM2.5, which consists of particles less than 2.5 µm in diameter, is of special interest because it can easily enter human respiratory system and therefore can have adverse impact on human health. Many studies have been conducted to monitor PM outdoors, but since people spend most of their time indoors, it is especially important to monitor indoor pollution, both in homes and workplaces. Metal processing techniques such as welding, cutting, grinding, and polishing produce significant levels of PM in metal workshops. PM from these sources, especially from welding, is typically less than 2.5 µm in diameter, often even less than 1 µm in diameter, so it can easily enter human respiratory system. Moreover, it is rich with heavy metal components such as Mn and Zn, which can cause specific health problems such as manganism. It is, therefore, very important to monitor PM levels in metal workshops, but also to monitor health status of the workers exposed to high levels of PM. The aim of this study is to determine whether the exposure to metals of the workers in metal workshops in Croatia is elevated by evaluating the exposure to metals in particulate matter and by biological monitoring. This can possibly lead to new regulations in this area. In order to estimate the levels of exposure to PM, six metal workshops in the vicinity of the city of Rijeka, Croatia, were chosen to participate in the study. Two of them are dealing with the aluminium components and four of them are mainly dealing with the steel and stainless steel components. Three of the workshops (including aluminium workshops) are rather small, with the area of about 200 m2 , and the other three are located in bigger halls, with the area of 400 m2 or more. In the first workshop, two sampling campaigns were performed. In the first one, the PM2.5 samples were collected in a store-room. 12-h samples were taken through 13 days, so that the samples represent daily and weekly changes in PM2.5 levels. In the second campaign, the sampling was performed in the main working room and samples were taken at finer time resolution. During the working time, 1-h samples were taken and one single 12-h sample was taken during the rest of the day. The sampling was performed during three working days. Similar sampling regime was performed in other workshops. During the working time, 1-h or 2-h samples were taken, and during the non-working time 4-h or 8-h samples were taken. The sampling lasted for three working days in each workshop. Additional sampling with an optical particle counter was performed in most of the workshops, during about ten days at each. Additional sapling was performed at two control workplaces: one laboratory and one office at the University of Rijeka. Three consecutive 8-h samples of PM2.5 were taken in each workplace, while the optical particle counter was used over longer period of time. The samples of PM2.5 were collected on thin polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon) filters with a cyclone sampler. Overall, 234 samples were collected on the filters, including 134 hourly samples, 26 2-h samples, 29 4-h samples, 15 8-h samples and 30 12-h samples. Mass concentrations were obtained gravimetrically and elemental analysis was performed with X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) techniques. Concentrations of Na, Mg, Al, Si, P, S, Cl, K, Ca, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb and Bi were obtained. Additionally, an optical particle counter measured PM concentrations of 6 different fractions from 0.3 to 10 µm in diameter. About 1800 h of data were collected in this way. As a first step to estimate possible health impacts of PM, biological samples were taken from 34 workers who agreed to participate in the study. Samples of hair were analysed from 30 workers from all the workshops included in the study, while 8 samples of nails were analysed from the workers from the first workshop. Additionally, 34 unexposed persons were included in the control group, from which 32 hair samples and 9 nail samples were analysed. Elemental analysis of biological samples was performed with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) and concentrations of Al, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb were determined. In most of the workshops, PM2.5 and elemental concentrations showed a pattern clearly connected to the working activities. The highest concentrations of almost all elements were obtained for the first workshop, during the second sampling campaign. Hourly PM2.5 concentrations in this period were up to 2900 µg/m3 , while Mn and Fe hourly concentrations were up to 45 and 1400 µg/m3 , respectively. In this and other steel workshops, Fe was a predominant element, making up to 50 % of total mass. Mn was one of the most recognizable elements, being one of the main components of welding electrodes. In the aluminium workshops, the total concentrations were much lower and with much different elemental compositions. In the second workshop, the maximum hourly PM2.5 concentration was 300 µg/m3 , while in the third workshop the maximum PM2.5 concentration was only 38 µg/m3 . As expected, Fe was not the predominant element, but neither was Al, because aluminium parts were neither welded nor heated in any other way that could produce fine particles. Much lower PM2.5 concentrations were measured in control workplaces, where the maximum PM2.5 concentration was only 9 µg/m3 . Concentrations and composition of PM2.5 in control workplaces were comparable to the data obtained previously in the outdoor air in the Rijeka city centre. In the hair samples, significantly higher concentrations of Al, Ti, Mn, Fe and Pb were measured in samples of workers in steel workshops than in the control samples. The highest concentrations of these metals were found for samples of workers from the first, fourth and fifth workshop, were the highest PM2.5 concentrations were measured as well. Although a very small number of nail samples was analysed, higher concentrations of Ti, Mn and Fe in the samples of workers are clearly visible. This indicates that these metals were deposited in analyzed tissues after being inhaled as particulate matter. It should be further investigated if these metals are deposited in other tissues and organs, such as liver or brain and whether that causes health problems. The results of this investigation show that deposition of metals in tissues of workers occurs even under PM concentrations that are far below limit values. For possible revision of current limit values it is necessary to carry on with further research wchich would investigate health status of the workers

Effects of Psychoeducation on Treatment Satisfaction in Schizophrenic Patients on Olanzapine Long Acting Injection

Healthcare decisions may have life-changing consequences which are even more important in schizophrenia treatment programs. In this study, we hypothesized that there is a significant difference in treatment satisfaction among patients after completing the one-year psychoeducation program. We expected a higher overall treatment satisfaction among 19 schizophrenic patients on olanzapine long acting injection after completing the one-year psychoeducation program. Results showed that there is no difference in treatment satisfaction among patients after completing the psychoeducational program. However, the additional analysis did elicit a statistically significant change in treatment satisfaction before and after enrolling in the olanzapine long acting program. Patients reported a significantly higher treatment satisfaction after enrolling in the olanzapine long acting injection program than before, previous to completing the psychoeducational program, as well as after the program completion. We concluded that the patient’s treatment satisfaction with the psychoeducative program achieved a constant high value even after a year of enrolling. A high treatment satisfaction shows that this type of therapy has a great potential in providing a more successful positive outcome in the treatment of schizophrenic patients, and it should be considered as a crucial part of patient care and treatment

Characteristics of aerosol pollution in the vicinity of an oil refinery near Rijeka, Croatia

Fine aerosol pollution is one of the most important factors in air pollution monitoring. Industrial production often represents significant source of aerosol pollution in surrounding areas, and therefore, it is important to understand its impact on air quality. In order to investigate contribution coming from the oil refinery to air pollution, PM2.5 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter smaller than 2.5 μm) samples were collected in the vicinity of an oil refinery during the 1‐year period. At the same time, PM2.5 was sampled in the city of Rijeka, Croatia, at the distance that is about 10 km far from the refinery. This site was used for comparison. The sampling was performed with two cyclone samplers on thin polytetrafluoroethylene filters. PM2.5 was sampled for 24 h every other day, simultaneously at both locations. In total, 306 samples were collected. The samples were analysed using X‐ray fluorescence and particle‐ induced X‐ray emission to obtain concentrations of 17 elements from Na to Pb. Additionally, concentrations of black carbon were determined using laser‐integrated plate method. It was found that concentrations of S, V, and Ni, elements characteristic for oil burning, were substantially higher at the refinery sampling site comparing to the reference location. Obtained concentrations were statistically evaluated by performing positive matrix factorization to identify oil refinery as one of the pollution sources in the vicinity of such a facility. The same method was also performed at the urban site where the contribution from oil refinery was not separated from other similar sources

Deposition of heavy metals in biological tissues of workers in metal workshops

Welding and cutting of metals produce large amounts of particulate matter (PM), which poses a significant health risk to exposed workers. Appropriate biological markers to estimate exposure are of great interest for occupational health and safety. Here, hair and nail samples from metal workers were analyzed, which appear to be more suitable than blood or urine samples for assessing long-term exposure. Four workshops working with steel components were included in the study. The hair and nail samples were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) to measure the concentrations of 12 elements. At the workplaces, the concentrations of 15 elements in particulate matter were determined using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and particle-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) techniques. The hair and nail samples of the workers contained significantly higher metal concentrations than the analytical results of a nonexposed control group. The most significant difference between the groups was found for Ti, Mn, Fe, and Co

Impact of the Zn source on the RSN-type zeolite formation

International audienc

Slagalica nasljeđa : priručnik za opismenjavanje iz medicinske genetike

"Slagalica nasljeđa" - priručnik za opismenjavanje iz medicinske genetike ima tri namjene. Prije svega, on je edukativna slikovnica za studente, liječnike i pacijente, ali i druge zainteresirane pojedince jer su u njoj kroz ilustracije objašnjene osnove genetike čovjeka, kao i osnove medicinske genetike. Od toga kako prepoznati osobu s genetičkim poremećajem, kako nastaju i koje vrste genetičkih poremećaja postoje pa sve do toga na koji ih način možemo dijagnosticirati. Nadalje, nakon svake ilustracije na pojedinoj stranici nalaze se definicije 79 pojmova iz medicinske genetike koje čine tezaurus za studente, liječnike i pacijente koji se na bilo koji način susreću s genetičkim poremećajima. Naposljetku, ova knjiga sadrži i primjere rečenica u koje su ubačeni stručni pojmovi iz medicinske genetike, a koji su namijenjeni studentima prilikom savladavanja komunikacijskih vještina na kolegiju Medicinska genetika, ali i liječnicima prilikom informiranja svojih pacijenata o (mogućem) genetičkom poremećaju. Uz kreatoricu ideje i urednicu izdanja, doc. dr. sc. Ninu Perezu, autori izdanja su studenti šeste godine Integriranog preddiplomskog i diplomskog sveučilišnog studija Medicina i prof. dr. sc. Saša Ostojić

Slagalica nasljeđa : priručnik za opismenjavanje iz medicinske genetike

"Slagalica nasljeđa" - priručnik za opismenjavanje iz medicinske genetike ima tri namjene. Prije svega, on je edukativna slikovnica za studente, liječnike i pacijente, ali i druge zainteresirane pojedince jer su u njoj kroz ilustracije objašnjene osnove genetike čovjeka, kao i osnove medicinske genetike. Od toga kako prepoznati osobu s genetičkim poremećajem, kako nastaju i koje vrste genetičkih poremećaja postoje pa sve do toga na koji ih način možemo dijagnosticirati. Nadalje, nakon svake ilustracije na pojedinoj stranici nalaze se definicije 79 pojmova iz medicinske genetike koje čine tezaurus za studente, liječnike i pacijente koji se na bilo koji način susreću s genetičkim poremećajima. Naposljetku, ova knjiga sadrži i primjere rečenica u koje su ubačeni stručni pojmovi iz medicinske genetike, a koji su namijenjeni studentima prilikom savladavanja komunikacijskih vještina na kolegiju Medicinska genetika, ali i liječnicima prilikom informiranja svojih pacijenata o (mogućem) genetičkom poremećaju. Uz kreatoricu ideje i urednicu izdanja, doc. dr. sc. Ninu Perezu, autori izdanja su studenti šeste godine Integriranog preddiplomskog i diplomskog sveučilišnog studija Medicina i prof. dr. sc. Saša Ostojić