Patrycja Rogula-Kopiec

A Study on the Seasonal Mass Closure of Ambient Fine and Coarse Dusts in Zabrze, Poland

Diurnal samples of PM2.5 and PM2.5–10 were taken in an urban background area in Zabrze (Upper Silesia in southern Poland) in the winter (January–March) and summer (July–September) of 2009. The samples were analyzed for carbon (organic and elemental), water soluble ions (Na+, NH4+, K+, Mg2+, Ca2+, F−, Cl−, NO3−, PO43−, SO42−) and concentrations of 27 elements by using, respectively, a Behr C50 IRF carbon analyzer, a Herisau Metrohm AG ion chromatograph, and a PANalitycal EPSILON 5 X-ray fluorescence spectrometer. To perform the mass closure calculations for both dust fractions in the two periods, the particulate matter (PM) chemical components were categorized into organic matter, elemental carbon, secondary inorganic aerosol, crustal matter, marine components and unidentified matter. The chemical composition of the two dust fractions and the element enrichment coefficients in the two seasons, referred to proper emission profiles, proved about 80% of PM2.5 and more than 50% (in winter 65%) of PM2.5–10 mass coming from anthropogenic sources, mainly from fuel combustion and specific municipal emission shaping the winter emission of ambient dust in the area.

Origin-Oriented Elemental Profile of Fine Ambient Particulate Matter in Central European Suburban Conditions

Twenty-four-hour samples of fine ambient particulate matter (PM2.5; particles with aerodynamic diameters ≤2.5 µm) were collected in a suburban (quasi-rural) area in Racibórz (Poland) between 1 January 2011 and 26 December 2012. The samples were analyzed for the contents of 28 elements. Sources of PM2.5 were identified and the contribution of each source to the PM2.5 concentration was assessed using an enrichment factor (EF) analysis, a principal component analysis (PCA), and multi-linear regression analysis (MLRA). In the cold season (January–March and October–December 2011–2012), the mean ambient concentration of PM2.5 in Racibórz was 48.7 ± 39.4 µg·m−3, which was much higher than at other suburban or rural sites in Europe. Additionally the ambient concentrations of some toxic PM2.5-bound elements were also high, i.e., the mean ambient concentrations of PM2.5-bound As, Cd, and Pb were 11.3 ± 11.5, 5.2 ± 2.5, and 34.0 ± 34.2 ng·m−3, respectively. In the warm season (April–September 2011–2012), the PM2.5 and PM2.5-bound element concentrations in Racibórz were comparable to the concentrations noted at other suburban (or rural) sites in Europe. Our findings suggest that elemental composition and concentrations of PM2.5 in Racibórz are mainly influenced by anthropogenic emissions, i.e., the energy production based on coal and biomass combustion, traffic, and industry.

Submicron particle-bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the Polish teaching rooms: Concentrations, origin and health hazard

The goal of the work was to investigate the concentrations of the 16 US EPA priority polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) bound to submicrometer particles (particulate matter, PM1) suspended in the air of university teaching rooms and in the atmospheric air outside. Two teaching rooms were selected in two Polish cities, Gliwice, southern Poland, and Warsaw, central Poland, differing with regard to the ambient concentrations and major sources of PM and PAH. The variabilities of indoor and outdoor 24-hr concentrations of PM1-bound PAH, the ratio (I/O) of the indoor to outdoor 24-hr concentrations of PM1-bound PAH, probable sources of PAH and the level of the hazard from the mixture of the 16 PAH (ΣPAH) to humans at both sites were analyzed. In both Warsaw and Gliwice, the mean concentrations of PM1-bound ΣPAH were slightly higher in the atmospheric air than in the rooms. The indoor and outdoor concentrations of individual PAH in Gliwice were correlated, in Warsaw - they were not. Most probably, the lack of the correlations in Warsaw was due to the existence of an unidentified indoor source of gaseous PAH enriching PM1 in phenanthrene, fluorene, and pyrene. Although the ambient concentrations of PM1-bound PAH were low compared to the ones observed earlier at both sites, they were much higher than in other urbanized European areas. However, because of low mass share of heavy PAH in ΣPAH, the various indicators of the health hazard from the 16 PAH mixture were low compared to other regions.

Particulate matter in indoor spaces: known facts and the knowledge gaps*

Abstract: Particulate matter in indoor spaces: known facts and the knowledge gaps. As people spend most of the time in closed spaces (flats, workplaces, schools etc.), the indoor air has been researched for many years all over the world. Particulate matter (PM) is one of the most often examined pollutants in the indoor and outdoor air. The following study presents the facts about PM in closed spaces and the most often taken actions. The least known aspects related to the indoor air pollution with PM are demonstrated. The indoor space of various service and office buildings/facilities (not related to production, i.e. offices, shops, beauty parlours, restaurant kitchens, restaurants, pubs etc.) seem to be an unrecognized area in the air pollution studies. Importantly, a great number of people work in such spaces all over the world and thus spend there a large part of their lives.

PM Origin or Exposure Duration? Health Hazards from PM-Bound Mercury and PM-Bound PAHs among Students and Lecturers

This study assessed inhalation exposure to particulate matter (PM1)-bound mercury (Hgp) and PM1-bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) among university students. For this purpose, simultaneous indoor (I) and outdoor (O) measurements were taken from two Polish technical universities (in Gliwice and Warsaw) located in distinct areas with respect to ambient concentrations and major sources of PM. The indoor geometric mean concentrations of Hgp were found to be 1.46 pg·m−3 and 6.38 pg·m−3 in Warsaw and Gliwice, while the corresponding outdoor concentrations were slightly lower at 1.38 pg·m−3 and 3.03 pg·m−3, respectively. A distinct pattern was found with respect to PAH concentrations with estimated I/O values of 22.2 ng·m−3/22.5 ng·m−3 in Gliwice and 10.9 ng·m−3/11.12 ng·m−3 in Warsaw. Hazard quotients (HQs) as a result of exposure to Hgp for students aged 21 ranged from 3.47 × 10−5 (Warsaw) to 1.3 × 10−4 (Gliwice) in terms of reasonable maximum exposure (RME). The non-cancer human health risk value related to Hgp exposure was thus found to be below the acceptable risk level value of 1.0 given by the US EPA. Daily exposure values for lecture hall occupants, adjusted to the benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) toxicity equivalent (BaPeq), were 2.9 and 1.02 ng·m−3 for the Gliwice and Warsaw students, respectively. The incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) values with respect to exposure to PM1-bound PAHs during the students’ time of study were 5.49 × 10−8 (Warsaw) and 1.43 × 10−7 (Gliwice). Thus, students’ exposure to indoor PAHs does not lead to increased risk of lung cancer.

POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS IN VARIOUS FRANCTIONS OF AMBIENT PARTICULATE MATTER AT AREAS DOMINATED BY TRAFFIC EMISSION

The paper presents the results of the research of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) associated with four fractions of particulate matter (PM, PM10, PM2,5 and PM1; fractions of particles whose aerodynamic diameter ranges from 30 nm to respectively: 100, 10, 2.5 and 1 μm) conducted at points located on the side of a highway and at a busy crossroads in Katowice. The highway research was carried out in the spring, and the crossroads research in the summer of 2012. Samples were taken by low pressure impactor DEKATI. The analysis of PAHs in ambient particulate matter samples was performed by gas chromatography. The average concentration of the sum of 16 PAH associated with PM, which amounted to 14.6 ng/m3 in the spring, was two times higher than in the summer. This concentration was a few or even several times lower than the levels recorded earlier in the cities of southern Poland in the winter. Meanwhile, indicators of toxicity, mutagenicity and carcinogenicity calculated for PAH at the highway and the crossroads were high. This indicates high health risk generated by the presence of PAHs in the Katowice air also in spring and summer time. The values of diagnostic ratio, roughly showing the origin of PAHs associated with the PM, confirmed that during the period of the research transportation was the main source of PAHs in both points of Katowice.