Fuel-Type Independent Parameterization of Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from Western US Wildfires

Sekimoto, Kanako; Coggon, Matthew M.; Gkatzelis, Georgios I.; Stockwell, Chelsea E.; Peischl, Jeff; Soja, Amber J.; Warneke, Carsten

doi:10.1021/acs.est.3c00537

Cited by 8 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…The detailed chemistry of wildfire smoke from different combustible fuels, locations, and temperature profiles needs to be studied further [32]. Different conditions may result in different compounds [37,51], especially for the oxygenated, aged smoke carried over long distances and throughout long fire seasons into heavily populated, urban areas [10].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impacts on Urban VOCs and PM2.5 during a Wildfire Episode

Wang,

Wagner

et al. 2024

Environments

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This study focuses on the impact of wildfire smoke emissions on regional, urban air quality during a wildfire event. We measured volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the San Francisco Bay Area to assess air quality during a wildfire event and compared them to those in a later non-wildfire period. VOCs were collected using thermal desorption tubes and quantified using thermal desorption-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (TD-GC/MS). Elevated concentrations of VOCs such as 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene (0.33 ± 0.01 µg/m3), benzene (1.03 ± 0.02 µg/m3), toluene (2.15 ± 0.04 µg/m3), ethylbenzene (0.60 ± 0.02 µg/m3), and m, p-xylene (0.77 ± 0.07 µg/m3) were observed in the wildfire event. Compared with that in the non-wildfire season, the toluene concentration during the wildfire period was more than three times the non-wildfire concentration. Similarly, the benzene concentration during the wildfire was almost four times higher, and that of p, m-xylene was three times higher. The higher wildfire levels were statistically significant for sec-butylbenzene, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, n-propylbenzene, o-xylene, styrene, 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and p,m-xylene (p < 0.00001). These higher VOC levels compared with those for the non-fire period may potentially pose a public health concern. Open face passive sampler (OFPS)-collected PM was analyzed using scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDS) and revealed organic carbon tar balls. The highest daily average beta-attenuation-monitored PM2.5 during the fire period was 200 µg/m3 and the highest hourly average was 270 µg/m3. Monitoring gas phase species in addition to PM concentrations is useful during wildfire season to inform public health guidance.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Note that the method used in this study was limited by the 76 compounds in our target list. Different wildfire fuel types can generate other VOCs [7,51], which were not detectable with this method. Future work will expand our methods and detection lists for the better characterization of wildfire-generated VOCs.…”

Section: Vocs Detected During the Wildfire Periodmentioning

confidence: 93%

Impacts on Urban VOCs and PM2.5 during a Wildfire Episode

Wang,

Wagner

et al. 2024

Environments

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Wildfire Smoke: Health Effects, Mechanisms, and Mitigation

Lei,

et al. 2024

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Wildfires are becoming more frequent and intense on a global scale, raising concerns about their acute and long-term effects on human health. We conducted a systematic review of the current epidemiological evidence on wildfire health risks and a meta-analysis to investigate the association between wildfire smoke exposure and various health outcomes. We discovered that wildfire smoke increases the risk of premature deaths and respiratory morbidity in the general population. Meta-analysis of cause-specific mortality and morbidity revealed that wildfire smoke had the strongest associations with cardiovascular mortality (RR: 1.018, 95% CI: 1.014−1.021), asthma hospitalization (RR: 1.054, 95% CI: 1.026− 1.082), and asthma emergency department visits (RR: 1.117, 95% CI: 1.035− 1.204) in the general population. Subgroup analyses of age found that adults and elderly adults were more susceptible to the cardiopulmonary effects of wildfire smoke. Next, we systematically addressed the toxicological mechanisms of wildfire smoke, including direct toxicity, oxidative stress, inflammatory reactions, immune dysregulation, genotoxicity and mutations, skin allergies, inflammation, and others. We discuss wildfire smoke risk mitigation strategies including public health interventions, regulatory measures, and personal actions. We conclude by highlighting current research limitations and future directions for wildfire research, such as elucidating the complex interactions of wildfire smoke components on human health, developing personalized risk assessment tools, and improving resilience and adaptation strategies to mitigate the health effects of wildfires in changing climate.

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A Critical Review of Deep Oxidation of Gaseous Volatile Organic Compounds via Aqueous Advanced Oxidation Processes

Huang,

Xie,

Xiao

et al. 2024

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are considered to be the most recalcitrant gaseous pollutants due to their high toxicity, diversity, complexity, and stability. Gas–solid catalytic oxidation methods have been intensively studied for VOC treatment while being greatly hampered by energy consumption, catalyst deactivation, and byproduct formation. Recently, aqueous advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) have attracted increasing interest for the deep oxidation of VOCs at room temperature, owing to the generation of abundant reactive oxygen species (ROS). However, current reviews mainly focus on VOC degradation performance and have not clarified the specific reaction process, degradation products, and paths of VOCs in different AOPs. This study systematically reviews recent advances in the application of aqueous AOPs for gaseous VOC removal. First, the VOC gas–liquid mass transfer and chemical oxidation processes are presented. Second, the latest research progress of VOC removal by various ROS is reviewed to study their degradation performances, pathways, and mechanisms. Finally, the current challenges and future strategies are discussed from the perspectives of synergistic oxidation of VOC mixtures, accurate oxidation, and resource utilization of target VOCs via aqueous AOPs. This perspective provides the latest information and research inspiration for the future industrial application of aqueous AOPs for VOC waste gas treatment.

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Fuel-Type Independent Parameterization of Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from Western US Wildfires

Cited by 8 publications

References 55 publications

Impacts on Urban VOCs and PM2.5 during a Wildfire Episode

Impacts on Urban VOCs and PM2.5 during a Wildfire Episode

Wildfire Smoke: Health Effects, Mechanisms, and Mitigation

A Critical Review of Deep Oxidation of Gaseous Volatile Organic Compounds via Aqueous Advanced Oxidation Processes

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