Quantificational exposure, sources, and health risks posed by heavy metals in indoor and outdoor household dust in a typical smelting area in China

Cao, Suzhen; Chen, Xing; Zhang, Linlin; Xing, Xiu‐Shuang; Wen, Dongshen; Wang, Beibei; Qin, Ning; Wei, Fusheng; Duan, Xiaoli

doi:10.1111/ina.12683

Cited by 39 publications

(19 citation statements)

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“…The considerable contribution of the air inhalation pathway to the calculated ΣHI values is of concern due to the inevitability of the population's exposure to atmospheric Hg. The important role of the air inhalation pathway in the present study contrasts with the conventional dominance of the soil ingestion, which is usually accompanied by the inhalation pathway contributing the least to ΣHI values [1,11,[53][54][55][56]. Some studies [42], however, have found that air inhalation may be a dominant contributor to human exposure to Hg in the case of adults, with ingestion still having more impact on ΣHI values for children, which is consistent with the results of the present study.…”

Section: Human Health Risk Characterization Via the Probabilistic Methodssupporting

confidence: 85%

Potential Human Exposure to Mercury (Hg) in a Chlor-Alkali Plant Impacted Zone: Risk Characterization Using Updated Site Assessment Data

et al. 2021

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Industrial activities have resulted in severe environmental contamination that may expose rural and urban populations to unacceptable health risks. For example, chlor-alkali plants (CAPs) have historically contributed mercury (Hg) contamination in different environmental compartments. One such site (a burden from the Soviet Union) is located in an industrial complex in Pavlodar, Kazakhstan. Earlier studies showed the CAP operating in the second half of the twentieth century caused elevated Hg levels in soil, water, air, and biota. However, follow-up studies with thorough risk characterization are missing. The present study aims to provide a detailed risk characterization based on the data from a recent site assessment around the former CAP. The ⅀HI (hazard index) ranged from 9.30 × 10−4 to 0.125 (deterministic method) and from 5.19 × 10−4 to 2.54 × 10−2 (probabilistic method). The results indicate acceptable excess human health risks from exposure to Hg contamination in the region, i.e., exposure to other Hg sources not considered. Air inhalation and soil ingestion pathways contributed to the highest ⅀HI values (up to 99.9% and 92.0%, respectively). The residential exposure scenario (among four) presented the greatest human health risks, with ⅀HI values ranging from 1.23 × 10−2 to 0.125. Although the local urban and rural population is exposed to acceptable risks coming from exposure to Hg-contaminated environmental media, an assessment of contamination directly on the former CAP site on the industrial complex could not be performed due to access prohibition. Furthermore, the risks from ingesting contaminated fish were not covered as methyl-Hg was not targeted. An additional assessment may be needed for the scenarios of exposure of workers on the industrial complex and of the local population consuming fish from contaminated Lake Balkyldak. Studies on the fate and transport of Hg in the contaminated ecosystem are also recommended considering Hg methylation and subsequent bioaccumulation in the food chain.

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Section: Human Health Risk Characterization Via the Probabilistic Methodssupporting

confidence: 85%

Potential Human Exposure to Mercury (Hg) in a Chlor-Alkali Plant Impacted Zone: Risk Characterization Using Updated Site Assessment Data

et al. 2021

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“…Air pollution is one of the most concerning environmental challenges in China, which causes more than 1 million premature deaths each year. − Although considerable effort has been devoted to mitigating air pollution during the past several decades, many cities still suffer from severe air pollutions. For instance, Beijing’s average PM 2.5 concentration was 42 μg/m 3 in 2019 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Substantial Changes in Nitrogen Dioxide and Ozone after Excluding Meteorological Impacts during the COVID-19 Outbreak in Mainland China

Zhao

Zhang

et al. 2020

Environ. Sci. Technol. Lett.

187

135

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The COVID-19 outbreak in China led to dramatic changes in human activities resulting from the sudden infection prevention and control measures. Here, we use ground-level observations and model simulations to examine the nationwide spatial−temporal variations of six air pollutants before and after the initiation of First-Level Public Health Emergency Response. The level of ambient NO 2 declined significantly, and in most cities, the decline was dominated by reduced emissions. Meanwhile, the level of O 3 increased significantly during this period, and the nonmeteorological factors explained the increase. For the other air pollutants (PM 2.5 , SO 2 , and CO), the observed declines on the national scale were obviously affected by the meteorological conditions. In Wuhan, significant declines were found for air pollutants except O 3 and emissions dominated the changes, while in Beijing during the same period, only the level of NO 2 significantly declined. This study clearly shows that the meteorological changes contributed substantially to the observed changes in most air pollutants, and this must be considered in evaluating the impacts of pollutant source changes on air quality during the specific event and in assessing source-oriented risks.

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“…Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS) and Atomic Fluorescence Spectrophotometry (AFS) [32,33] Inductively Coupled Plasma-Dynamic Reaction Cell-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-DRC-MS). [28] Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) [20,23,24,34] Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS) [5,17,26,27,35] Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and Cold Vapor Generation-Atomic Fluorescence Spectrometry (CV-AFS, XGF-1011A) [8,14,22] X-ray Spectrometry for Energy-Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) [36] Energy-Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy [21,37] Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (FAAS) [29] Energy-Dispersive X-ray Analysis (EDXRA) [38] According to Bioline [39], the following factors should be considered when purchasing equipment for analysis of samples in the laboratory: price, service contract (warranty), availability of spare parts and consumables, technical support and system updates, and end-user ability to operate the equipment. There are also other factors such as time taken by the instrument to complete analysis, accuracy, and precision.…”

Section: Methods Used For Measuring Dust Referencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Notable differences have also been reported between risks from outdoor and indoor urban dust [34]. These differences have largely been attributed to differences in composition of indoor and outdoor dust that result from differences in the sources that contribute to these types of dust.…”

Section: Laddmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These differences have largely been attributed to differences in composition of indoor and outdoor dust that result from differences in the sources that contribute to these types of dust. For example, in Southwest China, the non-cancer risks for Zn, Cr, Mn, Hg, and Cu were mainly attributed to indoor dust, which had higher levels of Pb, Cd, and As than did outdoor dust [34]. Potential sources of the pollutants in indoor dust were cited as animals, furniture, and other human activities such as smoking, cleaning, and coal combustion.…”

Section: Laddmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Review of Metal Levels in Urban Dust, Their Methods of Determination, and Risk Assessment

2021

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This review gives insights into the levels of metals in urban dust, their determination methods, and risk assessment. Urban dust harbors a number of pollutants, including heavy metals. There are various methods used for the sampling of urban dust for heavy-metal analysis and source-apportionment purposes, with the predominant one being the use of plastic sampling materials to avoid prior contamination. There are also various methods for the determination of metals, which include: atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), among others. Studies have shown that pollutants in urban dust are mainly derived from industrial activities and coal combustion, whereas traffic emissions are also an important, but not a predominant source of pollution. The varying particle-size distribution of urban dust and its large surface area makes it easier for the deposition and transport of heavy metals. Risk-assessment studies have shown that metals in urban dust could cause such problems as human pulmonary toxicity and reduction of invertebrate populations. The risk levels seem to be higher in children than adults, as some studies have shown. It is therefore important that studies on metals in urban dust should always incorporate risk assessment as one of the main issues.

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Quantificational exposure, sources, and health risks posed by heavy metals in indoor and outdoor household dust in a typical smelting area in China

Cited by 39 publications

References 50 publications

Potential Human Exposure to Mercury (Hg) in a Chlor-Alkali Plant Impacted Zone: Risk Characterization Using Updated Site Assessment Data

Potential Human Exposure to Mercury (Hg) in a Chlor-Alkali Plant Impacted Zone: Risk Characterization Using Updated Site Assessment Data

Substantial Changes in Nitrogen Dioxide and Ozone after Excluding Meteorological Impacts during the COVID-19 Outbreak in Mainland China

A Review of Metal Levels in Urban Dust, Their Methods of Determination, and Risk Assessment

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