• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.16 no.E
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• pp.1-17
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• 2000

In this study, the concentrations of particulate organic constituents of environmental tobacco smoke(ETS) were determined using an environmental smog chamber, where ETS is the sole source of target compounds. ETS was generated in a 30 ㎥ environmental chamber by a number of different cigarettes, including the Kentucky 1R4F reference cigarette and eight commercial brands. A total of 12 experimental runs was conducted, and target analytes included a group of ETS markers both in vapor and particulate phase and a class of polycylic aromatic hydrocarbos(PAHs) associated with ETS particles. The mass concentrations of PAH in ETS particles were also determined. The average contents of benzo(a) pyrene and benzo(a) anthracene in ETS particles for the commercial brands were 12.8 and 21.5$\mu\textrm{g}$/g, respectively, There values are all somewhat higher than those determined previously by other studies. Results form the chamber study are further used to estimate the average and variability of cigarette yields for target compounds associated with ETS. Finally, ratios of RSP to the surrogate standards of UVPM, FPM and solanesol were calculated for each sample. The average conversion factors factors for the eight commercial brands were 7.3, 38, and 41 for UVPM, EPM, and solanesol, respectively. The UVPM and FPM factors are in good agreement with the recently published values. Whereas there might be a substantial difference in the solanesol content among cigarettes produced in different countries, the variability is somewhat greater than those of UVPM and FPM, Unfortunately, comparison of the PAH yield data from this study with literature values was complicated by a lack of consistency in cigarette smoke generating methodology. Validation of the PAH yields was also difficult due to a lack of information on the ETS related PAH in the literature. From and engineering viewpoint , however, these data on the cigarette yields of ETS components may still provide useful information to studies on the mathematical modeling of indoor air quality management regarding tobacco smoke as a source of interest, or to studies on the assessment of human exposure to ETS.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.322-333
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• 2009

In this study, a measurement method was evaluated for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the ambient atmosphere. PAHs were sampled by high-volume samplers, and were then analysed with a GC/MS system. Particulate PAHs were collected on $8"{\times}10"$ quartz fiber filter, while vapor phase PAHs were adsorbed on polyurethane foam (PUF). Target compounds included a total of 36 PAHs, which are known to be frequently detected in the urban atmosphere. It was not necessary to clean-up samples before samples were analyzed using GC/MS, and the overall performance of the method was tested by a variety of quality control and quality assurance schemes. It is generally known that the clean-up procedure can negatively affect the recovery of samples. Precision and accuracy was evaluated using SRM provided by US NIST, and the results were generally satisfactory and reliable. However, the GC/MS method appeared not to be adequate for 6-rings PAHs, such as coronene, due to its lower sensitivity. In addition, collection efficiencies for low molecular compounds, such as 2-rings PAHs, were poor because of the lower retention volume of the PUF adsorbent. As a result, it was concluded that the method based on high-volume sampling and GC/MS analysis can give very reliable data by simultaneous sampling of both particulate and vapor phases for 3-rings to 5-rings PAHs of environmental concern.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.1-16
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• 1991

In this study, sampling and analytical procedures were evaluated for the determination of ambient levels of atmospheric PAH, both in gaseous and particulate phase. The method involves low-volume sampling and Soxhlet extraction of the filters and Tenax absorbent, followed by a clean-up stage using a silica column prior to analysis by reversed-phase HPLC with wavelength programmable fluorescence and UV detection. A total of 18 PAH were identified and quantified, all of which have been of environmental concern. In order to validate the methodology and to ensure compatibility of the results, the analytical method used for the determination of PAH was evaluated with respect to the efficiencies of extraction and clean-up procedure, HPLC separation, and lower limits of detection. In addition, substrate dependency of PAH recovery was investigated for the two types of fiters, i.e. glass fiber and PTFE filters.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.146-151
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• 2011

1-Nitropyrene (1-NP), 2-NP and 2-nitrofluoranthene (2-NFR) are useful markers for studying the atmospheric behaviors of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and nitropolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (NPAHs). However, present methods for measuring trace levels of these compounds are lesssensitive and laborious. Here we describe several improvements to a previously reported high-performance liquid chromatography-chemiluminescence detection system that allows it to determine trace levels of 1-, 2-NPs and 2-NFR. The proposed system was equipped with a reducer column packed with Pt/Rh instead of zinc whose life-time was limited. The combination of Cosmosil MS-II (monomeric ODS) and AR-II (polymeric ODS) columns was used instead of polymeric ODS columns as the separator column to improve the separation. An ethanol mixture with acetate buffer (pH 5.5) was used in place of an acetonitrile mixture with the same buffer to activate the reducer column. The same ethanol mixture was used as the mobile phase for the clean-up column. The switching time of the column switching valve was optimized to concentrate the amino-derivatives of above NPAHs quantitatively on the concentrator column. The concentrations of bis(2,4,6-trichlorophenly) oxalate and hydrogen peroxide in the chemiluminescence reagent solution were optimized to 0.4 mM and 30 mM, respectively, to increase the sensitivity. Under the above conditions, the detection limits (S/N=3) of 1-, 2-NPs and 2-NFR were 1 fmol (0.25 pg), 10 fmol (2.5 pg) and 4 fmol (1 pg), respectively. The proposed system was effectively used to determine trace levels of 1-, 2-NPs and 2-NFR in airborne particulates collected at Noto Peninsula. The atmospheric concentrations of 1-, 2-NPs and 2-NFR were not more than sub pg $m^{-3}$ levels. They were higher in winter (January) than in summer (July). In both seasons, the concentrations were in decreasing order, [2-NFR]>[1-NP]>[2-NP].

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.35-47
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• 2014

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the pollution level (gaseous and particle phase) in the public facilities for the PAHs, non-regulated materials, forecast the risk level by the health risk assessment (HRA) and propose the guideline level. PAH assessments through sampling of particulate matter of diameter < 2.5 ${\mu}m$ ($PM_{2.5}$). The user and worker exposure scenario for the PAHs consists of 24-hour exposure scenario (WIES) assuming the worst case and the normal exposure scenario (MIES) based on the survey. This study investigated 20 PAH substances selected out of 32 substances known to be carcinogenic or potentially carcinogenic. The risk assessment applies major toxic equivalency factor (TEF) proposed from existing studies and estaimates individual Excess Cancer Risk (ECR). The study assesses the fine dusts ($PM_{2.5}$) and the exposure levels of the gaseous and particle PAH materials for 6 spots in each 8 facility, e.g. underground subway stations, child-care facilities, elderly care facilities, super market, indoor parking lot, terminal waiting room, internet caf$\acute{e}$ (PC-rooms), movie theater. For internet caf$\acute{e}$ (PC-rooms) in particular, that marks the highest $PM_{2.5}$ concentration and the average concentration of 10 spots (2 spots for each cafe) is 73.3 ${\mu}g/m^3$ (range: 6.8-185.2 ${\mu}g/m^3$). The high level of $PM_{2.5}$ seen in internet cafes was likely due to indoor smoking in most cases. For the gaseous PAHs, the detection frequency for 4-5 rings shows high and the elements with 6 rings shows low frequency. For the particle PAHs, the detection frequency for 2-3 rings shows low and the elements with 6 rings show high frequency. As a result, it is investigated that the most important PAHs are the naphthalene, acenaphthene and phenanthrene from the study of Kim et al. (2013) and this annual study. The health risk assessment demonstrates that each facility shows the level of $10^{-6}-10^{-4}$. Considering standards and local source of pollution levels, it is judged that the management standard of the benzo (a)pyrene, one of the PAHs, shall be managed with the range of 0.5-1.2 $ng/m^3$. Smoking and ventilation were considered as the most important PAHs exposure associated with public facility $PM_{2.5}$. This study only estimated for inhalation health risk of PAHs and focused on the associated cancer risk, while multiple measurements would be necessary for public health and policy.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.362-377
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• 2014

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) have been of particular concern since they are present both in the vapor and particulate phases in ambient air. In this study, a simple method was applied to determine the vapor phase PAHs, and the performance of the new method was evaluated with a conventional method. The simple method was based on adsorption sampling and thermal desorption with GC/MS analysis, which is generally applied to the determination of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the air. A combination of Carbotrap (300 mg) and Carbotrap-C (100 mg) sorbents was used as the adsorbent. Target compounds included two rings PAHs such as naphthalene, acenaphthylene, and acenaphthene. Among them, naphthalene was listed as one of the main HAPs together with a number of VOCs in petroleum refining industries in the USA. For comparison purposes, a method based on adsorption sampling and solvent extraction with GC/MS analysis was adopted, which is in principle same as the NIOSH 5515 method. The performance of the adsorption sampling and thermal desorption method was evaluated with respect to repeatabilities, detection limits, linearities, and storage stabilities for target compounds. The analytical repeatabilities of standard samples are all within 20%. Lower detection limits was estimated to be less than 0.1 ppbv. In the results from comparison studies between two methods for real air samples. Although the correlation coefficients were more than 0.9, a systematic difference between the two groups was revealed by the paired t-test (${\alpha}$=0.05). Concentrations of two-rings PAHs determined by adsorption and thermal desorption method consistently higher than those by solvent extraction method. The difference was caused by not only the poor sampling efficiencies of XAD-2 for target PAHs and but also sample losses during the solvent extraction and concentration procedure. This implies that the levels of lower molecular PAHs tend to be underestimated when determined by a conventional PAH method utilizing XAD-2 (and/or PUF) sampling and solvent extraction method. The adsorption sampling and thermal desorption with GC analysis is very simple, rapid, and reliable for lower-molecular weight PAHs. In addition, the method can be used for the measurement of VOCs in the air simultaneously. Therefore, we recommend that the determination of naphthalene, the most volatile PAH, will be better when it is measured by a VOC method instead of a conventional PAH method from a viewpoint of accuracy.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.192-203
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• 2020

Objectives: The concentration distributions of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs), dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenlys (dl-PCBs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in fine particles were investigated to provide basic data on POP behavior and composition analysis. Methods: The concentrations of PCDD/Fs, dl-PCBs, and PAHs by particle size were evaluated for TSP, PM₁₀, and PM_2.5. Also, fine dust component analysis and factor analysis were performed to identify the source of PCDD/Fs. Results: The particle size distribution was found to account for 24.3% of >10 ㎛, 14.5% of 2.5-10 ㎛, and 61.2% of <2.5 ㎛. The average contributions of coarse particles (>2.5 ㎛) and fine particles (<2.5 ㎛) were PCDD/Fs 67%, dl-PCBs 66%, benzo (a) pyrene 83% and PAHs 84%, and the contributions of fine particles (<2.5 ㎛) were higher than coarse particles (>2.5 ㎛). However, the contributions of coarse particles increased in April to September with higher temperatures, while those of fine particles increased in February to March with lower temperatures. Conclusions: Low chlorinated (4Cl-5Cl) PCDD/Fs were more adsorbed compared to coarse particles due to the influence of pollutant migration from particulate to gas phase according to temperature rise, whereas high chlorinated (6Cl-8Cl) PCDD/Fs were more adsorbed compared to fine particles. PCDD/Fs sources were assessed to be major sources of emissions, such as incineration facilities and/or open burning.