Influence of Asian and Western United States Urban Areas and Fires on the Atmospheric Transport of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, Polychlorinated Biphenyls, and Fluorotelomer Alcohols in the Western United States

Abstract

Atmospheric measurements of semivolatile organic compounds (SOCs) were made at Mt. Bachelor Observatory (MBO), located in Oregon’s Cascade Range, to understand the trans-Pacific and regional transport of SOCs from urban areas. High volume air sampling (~644 m3 for 24 hour periods) of both the gas and particulate phases was conducted from the 19th of April 2004 to the 13th of May 2006 (n=69); including NASA’s INTEX-B campaign in spring 2006 (n= 34 of 69). Air mass back trajectories were calculated and used to calculate source region impact factors (SRIFs), the percentage of time the sampled air mass resided in a given source region. Particulate-phase polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations at MBO increased with the percentage of air mass time in Asia and, in conjunction with other data, provided strong evidence that particulate-phase PAHs are emitted from Asia and undergo trans-Pacific atmospheric transport to North America. Gas-phase PAH and fluorotelomer alcohol (FTOH) concentrations significantly increased with the percentage of air mass time in California’s urban areas, while retene and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) concentrations increased with the percentage of air mass time in Oregon and during regional fire events. In addition, Σgas-phase PAH, retene, and levoglucosan concentrations were significantly correlated (p-value < 0.001) with ΣPCB concentrations, suggesting increased atmospheric PCB concentrations were associated with fires due to the volatilization of stored PCBs from soil and vegetation.

Global long-range transport and lung cancer risk from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons shielded by coatings of organic aerosol

“…5, Bottom). For example, BaP emitted from East Asia travels thousands of miles over the Pacific Ocean, reaching the west coast of the United States, consistent with previous observational studies that identified trans-Pacific atmospheric transport of PAHs (34)(35)(36). Similarly, BaP emitted from Western Europe travels to the east, and BaP emitted from South Africa travels over the South Atlantic Ocean, reaching South America.…”

Long-range atmospheric transport of persistent organochlorinated compounds from south and mainland south-eastern Asia to a remote mountain site in south-western China

“…Therefore the burning-related volatilization of historical residues of a-HCH and DDTs in spring could be another potential factor influencing atmospheric concentrations of the two compounds, which was also suggested in another report. 31 On the other hand, the mean g-HCH air concentration was 130 AE 150 pg m À3 , considerably higher than data reported elsewhere 13,14 but similar to levels measured at Waliguan Baseline Observatory. 10 The concentration reached a maximum during winter, especially in 2006 (Fig.…”

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Chinese surface soil: occurrence and distribution

“…Qomolangma,8,844.3 m a.s.l) and vast remote areas (e.g., the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau), which indicated the national wide pollution of PAHs in China (Tao et al 2011;Wang et al 2007). In addition to local and national influence across China, PAH pollution can also influence the neighbor countries and regions through long-range atmospheric transport (Inomata et al 2012;Lang et al 2008;Primbs et al 2008). …”