Concentration, Origin and Health Hazard from Fine Particle-Bound PAH at Three Characteristic Sites in Southern Poland

Suspended particles with the aerodynamic diameters not greater than 2.5 μm (PM(2.5)) and 1 μm (PM(1), sub-fraction of PM(2.5)) were sampled at three sites: an urban background site, rural background site, and urban traffic site in southern Poland. In total, there were 240 samples taken within 02.08.2009–27.12.2010. Fifteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) were determined in each dust fraction. The averages of the concentration of total PAH (ΣPAH) and of particular PAH, as well as the share of carcinogenic PAH in total PAH (ΣPAH(carc)/ΣPAH), carcinogenic equivalent, mutagenic equivalent, and TCDD-toxic equivalent appeared high compared to other areas in the world. Their high values express the significance of health hazard from PM and PM-bound PAH in southern Poland. The diagnostic ratios suggest that PM-bound PAH originate from municipal (PM(1−2.5)) and vehicular (PM(1)) combustion

Geochemical and Mineralogical Characteristics of Airborne Particulate Matter in Relation to Human Health Risk

The main objective of this research was the determination of the geochemical and mineralogical properties of particulate matter: TSP (total suspended particles) and, especially PM1 (particles with aerodynamic diameter not greater than 1 µm) suspended in the air of a selected urban area in southern Poland. Identification of the emission sources of metals and metalloids bound in TSP and PM1 as well as the assessment of potential risk of urban ambient air to human health using hazard indices was an additional aim of this investigation. The daily TSP and PM1 quartz fiber filters collected during heating season were subjected to mass magnetic susceptibility (χ) measurements, SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy) observations and geochemical analyses. Obtained results revealed that the concentration of TSP and PM1 well correlated with their mass-specific magnetic susceptibility. The good relationship between the PM concentration and χ suggests that magnetic susceptibility measurements can be a good proxy of low-level atmospheric dust pollution. The rank order of potentially toxic elements (PTE) based on average concentration was Ba > Zn > Al > Fe > Pb > Mn > Ti > Cu > Cr > Ni >As > Cd > V > Tl, both for TSP and PM1. PM1/TSP ratios for PTE concentrations and χ were around or slightly above unity, which indicated that PM1 was the main carrier of PTE (with the exception of cadmium, copper and lead) and technogenic magnetic particles. The non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks were confirmed by very high values of human health indices

Number Size Distribution of Ambient Particles in a Typical Urban Site: The First Polish Assessment Based on Long-Term (9 Months) Measurements

This work presents results from the long-term measurements of particle number carried out at an urban background station in Zabrze, Poland. Ambient particles with aerodynamic diameters of between 28 nm and 10 μm were investigated by means of a DEKATI thirteen-stage electrical low pressure impactor (ELPI). The particle number-size distribution was bimodal, whilst its density function had the local maxima in the aerodynamic diameter intervals 0.056–0.095 μm and 0.157–0.263 μm. The average particle number in winter was nearly twice as high as in summer. The greatest number concentrations in winter were those of the particles with diameters of between 0.617 and 2.41 μm, that is, the anthropogenic particles from fossil fuel combustion. Approximately 99% of the particles observed in Zabrze had aerodynamic diameters ≤1 μm—they may have originated from the combustion of biomass, liquid, and gaseous fuels in domestic stoves or in car engines. The daily variation of particle number was similar for both seasons—the highest values were observed in the morning (traffic rush hour) and in the afternoon/late evening (traffic and house heating emissions). An additional maximum (0.028–0.056 μm) observed in the early afternoon in summer was due to the intensive formation of new PM particles from gas precursors

Badania nad występowaniem węgla w powietrzu wewnętrznym wybranych uczelni w Polsce

Prezentowane badania miały na celu rozpoznanie stężeń submikronowego pyłu (PM1) i związanego z nim węgla organicznego (OC) i elementarnego (EC) w sali wykładowej i tzw. laboratorium studenckim. W pracy omówiono zmienność 24-godzinnych stężeń PM1, OC i EC w obu pomieszczeniach (I, ang. indoor) oraz w powietrzu atmosferycznym (O, ang. outdoor), a także przeanalizowano stosunek I do O. Na przełomie wiosny i lata, niezależnie od lokalizacji (Gliwice – laboratorium studenckie, Warszawa – sala wykładowa), stężenie węgla elementarnego (EC) i organicznego (OC) wewnątrz sal dydaktycznych kształtowała intensywność migracji tych zanieczyszczeń wraz z powietrzem atmosferycznym. Tym samym można uznać, że w żadnym z badanych pomieszczeń dydaktycznych nie występuje istotne źródło OC i EC. Mimo to należy zauważyć, że warunki sprzyjające sorpcji różnych zanieczyszczeń, w tym zwłaszcza związków organicznych tworzących grupę OC na cząstkach pyłu, zmieniają się dynamicznie w czasie i przestrzeni. Wydaje się, że w innym okresie pomiarowym, na przykład w zimie, kiedy wietrzenie sal jest rzadsze a pył atmosferyczny ma inny skład, kumulacja zanieczyszczeń, w tym OC, wewnątrz sal może być większa niż w okresie ciepłym

Mass Size Distribution and Chemical Composition of the Surface Layer of Summer and Winter Airborne Particles in Zabrze, Poland

Mass size distributions of ambient aerosol were measured in Zabrze, a heavily industrialized city of Poland, during a summer and a winter season. The chemical analyses of the surface layer of PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 in this area were also performed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Results suggested that the influence of an atmospheric aerosol on the health condition of Zabrze residents can be distinctly stronger in winter than in summer because of both: higher concentration level of particulate matter (PM) and higher contribution of fine particles in winter season compared to summer. In Zabrze in June (summer) PM10 and PM2.5 reached about 20 and 14 μg/m3, respectively, while in December (winter) 57 and 51 μg/m3, respectively. The XPS analysis showed that elemental carbon is the major surface component of studied airborne particles representing about 78%–80% (atomic mass) of all detected elements