Polychlorinated biphenyls and organochlorine pesticides in atmospheric particulate matter of Northern China: distribution, sources, and risk assessment

Abstract

The objectives of this work are to track the contamination levels, distribution characteristics, and sources of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in atmospheric particulate matter (APM) of Northern China and to provide more comprehensive and fundamental data for risk assessment of organochlorine contaminants (OCs) in environments. Samples were extracted and purified by the microwave-assisted extraction and solid-phase extraction system, respectively. PCBs and OCPs were analyzed by gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer. The concentrations of ΣPCBs and ΣOCPs ranged from 0.73 to 112.65 ng/g and 0.14 to 34.73 ng/g, respectively. PCBs in atmospheric particulates collected from Shijiazhuang City had the highest concentration, whereas OCP congeners were at the relatively low levels. However, the highest concentration of OCPs occurred in Yongning City. The principal component analysis indicated that the predominant compositions of PCBs in most of samples were tetrachlorobiphenyl (Tetra-CB), pentachlorobiphenyl (Penta-CB), hexachlorobiphenyl (Hexa-CB), and heptachlorbiphenyl (Hepta-CB), while hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs), DDTs, chlordanes, and endosulfans were the dominant components of OCPs, which was attributed to their application characteristics. OCs in those particles were further used to assess a potential cancer risk to humans via ingestion, dermal contact, and inhalation. Cancer risk was evaluated in airborne particles caused by PCBs and OCPs. TEQPCBs values suggested that the representative areas were subject to different pollution degrees. However, the pollution of OCPs in certain areas should be a concern due to 41.6% of the high risk, which could pose a potential risk to organisms.

Outdoor Atmospheric Micro‐/Nanomineral‐Mediated Organochlorine Pesticides in Sichuan Basin, China: Adsorption, Occurrence, and Risk Assessment

“…The concentrations of sum of α-, β-, γ-, and δ-HCHs (ΣDDTs, ΣHCHs), and sum of endosulfan-I, endosulfan-II, and endosulfan sulfate (ΣSULPHs) found in the present study were compared with those found in other studies. Compared with the concentrations found in other parts of China, the concentrations of ΣDDTs in the present study were higher than those in Beijing metropolis (Cheng et al, 2011) and northern China (Ding et al, 2015) but lower than those in the Pearl River delta (Huang et al, 2014) and Tianjin (Wu et al, 2005). In addition, the concentrations of ΣDDTs in the Chengdu-Deyang-Mianyang economic region were much lower than those in the eastern Zealand coast of Denmark (1250 ng/g; Bräuner et al, 2011) and Romania (1130 ng/g; Dirtu et al, 2012); the concentrations were slightly lower than those observed in Canada (46 ng/g; Audy et al, 2018), the Czech Republic (42 ng/g; Audy et al, 2018), Pakistan (53 ng/ g; Ali et al, 2012), and Kopawa of Nepal (62.9 ng/g; Chandra Yadav et al, 2020); and the concentrations were higher than those reported in the United States in 2015 (8.4 ng/g; Arnold et al, 2018).…”

“…The C Ave of ΣHCHs (2.85 ± 2.10 ng/g) was lower than the C Ave values found in Beijing (Cheng et al, 2011), Tianjin (Wu et al, 2005), and Armenia (Dvorská et al, 2012) but similar to those in northern China (Ding et al, 2015) and the Pearl River delta (Huang et al, 2014). The C Ave of ΣSULPHs (2.92 ± 2.36 ng/g) was lower than the C Ave values found in the Pearl River delta (Huang et al, 2014), northern China (Ding et al, 2015), and Armenia (Dvorská et al, 2012). The concentrations of HCHs and SULPHs were low in the atmospheric dustfall in the Chengdu–Deyang–Mianyang economic region.…”

“…Supporting Information, Equations S1–S3, were used to estimate the carcinogenic risk of dust to humans via nondietary ingestion, dermal contact, and inhalation (Ding et al, 2015; Ge et al, 2013; Wang et al, 2013). Supporting Information, Table S4, shows the value of each parameter involved in the carcinogenic risk‐assessment equations.…”

Influential Factors and Dry Deposition of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) in Atmospheric Particles at an Isolated Island (Pingtan Island) in Fujian Province, China

“…Therefore, PCBs absorbed into particles gradually accumulate in the local atmosphere during the winter. For wind speed, previous studies suggested that higher wind speeds had a dilution effect on the local contaminant levels [15,17]. In contrast, positive correlations with wind speed were observed among PCB-105, 138, 187, and 170, as well as the indicator PCBs.…”