Risk Assessment of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and Formaldehyde in Korean Public Facilities: Derivation of Health Protection Criteria Levels

Abstract

This study suggests criteria to conduct a risk assessment of VOCs and formaldehyde in uncontrolled public facilities. Pollutants and facilities were selected based on two years of monitoring data and exposure scenarios in 573 uncontrolled public facilities, composed of 10 types of public institutions. With the exception of social welfare facilities, lifetime ECRs of formaldehyde and benzene in each facility were higher in employees than in users, except in social welfare facilities. In social welfare facilities, the risk of benzene for users (1×10 -5 ) was higher than that of workers (1×10 -6 ) because facility users live in the facility 24 hours per day, compared to workers who spend an average of 8 hours per day in the facility. The risk of benzene to workers in restaurants, academies, performance halls, internet café and pubs were estimated as high as 1×10 -4 and the risk to workers in the theaters and karaoke bars were recorded as 1×10 -5. Because lifetime ECRs of carcinogens exceeded 1×10 -4 for workers and users in most facilities, risk management of formaldehyde and benzene in these facilities is necessary. Although HQs of toluene and xylenes did not exceed 1.0, their HQs did exceed 0.1 in some facilities, so they were evaluated as potentially harmful materials. Additionally, criteria for health protection in IAQ by facility are suggested at 60-100 μg/m 3 for formaldehyde, 400-500 μg/m 3 for TVOCs, 10-20 μg/m 3 for benzene, 150-170 μg/m 3 for toluene and 100 μg/m 3 for xylenes, based on the survey on IAQ and HRA methodology. The excess rates of IAQ to health protection criteria in all facilities were 16% for formaldehyde, 8% for TVOCs and benzene, 9% for toulene, and 5% for xylenes.

Substantial Changes in Selected Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and Associations with Health Risk Assessments in Industrial Areas during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…The hazard quotient (HQ) defines the ratio of the exposure concentration for the specific VOC species to an acute reference concentration (RfC) of non-carcinogenic compounds [ 54 , 55 ]. An HQ value of less than 1 indicates a minor or insignificant non-carcinogenic effect, whereas higher values indicate greater non-carcinogenic risks resulting in significant adverse effects on human health [ 56 , 57 , 58 ]. The current study estimated the total HQ values for benzene for the years 2019, 2020, and 2021 to be 0.11, 0.43, and 0.09 for males, 0.13, 0.51, and 0.11 for females, and 0.23, 0.85, and 0.19 for children at all industrial sites, respectively.…”

Monitoring, Human Health Risk Assessment and Optimized Management for Typical Pollutants in Indoor Air from Random Families of University Staff, Wuhan City, China

“…According to relevant interviews and investigations, TVOC and formaldehyde concentrations were chosen as the evaluation indices of indoor environmental quality, and a rough classification evaluation scheme, combining air quality and pollution control, was put forward (Table 8). With a formaldehyde concentration of 0.05 mg·m −3 , human brain waves begin to appear abnormal; at 0.10 mg·m −3 , the national standard value, the body begins to perceive the smell and feel uncomfortable; at 0.20 mg·m −3 , the body begins to produce strong olfactory stimuli, and the eyes, nose, throat and upper respiratory tract are heavily irritated [40].…”

Characteristics of exposure and health risk air pollutants in public buses in Korea

“…With respect to the uncertainty constant of the toxicity data, the respiratory exposure reference value and the RfC value as high as 0.4 mg/m 3 were applied. In addition, RfC values of ethylbenzene, xylene, and styrene were referred to from Hardin et al (1981), Korsak et al (1994), Kim et al (2011), Mutti et al (1984, and Neubert et al (2001) (Tables 2). Assuming that the occupants would be exposed to polluted indoor air of a random concentration during the entire life, the exposure rate to a human body can be calculated with reference to the pollutant concentration, inhalation rate per day, body weight, exposure frequency, exposure duration, expected lifetime, etc.…”