PubMed · 9766956
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1994. Cigarette secrets.. https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.102-1567173
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The benzene and toluene levels inside of eight homes with attached garages were measured during July 1998 in Fairbanks, Alaska. A thermal desorption tube method and charcoal tube method were used to collect and analyze samples (thermal desorption tube method %RDS = 1.9 for n = 6; charcoal tube method %RDS = 6.5 for n = 4). Results for both methods were compared and showed indoor benzene levels ranging between 1.2 and 72 ppbv. The charcoal tube method usually gave lower results than the thermal desorption method. Nevertheless, the difference observed in benzene levels from each method was not significant as determined by application of the Wilcoxon t-test to these data. Using the thermal desorption method, the range of toluene found in homes was 0.1-111 ppbv. A correlation between toluene and benzene levels suggested the same point source. The benzene and toluene content of the indoor air and the number of small engines stored in the attached garage was also correlated. There was no correlation found between the urinary biomarker concentrations and the level of benzene or toluene measured inside the homes in the summer.
The objective of this study was to investigate a relationship between indoor air pollution from heating and cooking with coal-burning stoves and from environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), and the level of urinary 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OH-PY). 1-OH-PY was analysed in children living in three areas of Silesia, a province in Poland. Urine samples were collected in winter, (1) from children exposed to ETS and smoke resulting from indoor coal-burning and (2) from control children. Airborne particulates had been sampled by use of stationary samplers by the Regional Sanitary-Epidemiological Station, Katowice throughout 12 months prior to the urine sampling. The urinary level of 1-OH-PY tended to increase in children exposed to ETS, but the increase was not significant. The concentrations of 1-OH-PY in urine of passive smokers were significantly elevated only in Bytom where an index of smoking parents of the studied children was highest as compared to other areas. Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) due to domestic heating and cooking with coal-burning stoves resulted in significantly increased levels of 1-OH-PY. The results of this study indicate that the uptake of PAH due to indoor air pollution strongly affected the level of 1-OH-PY and that the main source of PAH in indoor air was the household use of coal for heating and/or cooking. When the results associated with this kind of exposure were excluded, median 1-OH-PY levels from the three examined areas assumed a pattern more similar to that of the benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) concentrations in ambient air.
Biological indicator organisms have been widely used for monitoring and banking purposes for many years. Although the complexity of the interactions between organisms and their environment is generally not easily comprehensible, environmental quality assessment using the bioindicator approach offers some convincing advantages compared to direct analysis of soil, water, or air. Measurement of air particulates is restricted to experienced laboratories with access to expensive sampling equipment. Additionally, the amount of material collected generally is just enough for one determination per sampling and no multidimensional characterization might be possible. Further, fluctuations in air masses have a pronounced effect on the results from air filter sampling. Combining the integrating property of bioindicators with the world wide availability and particular matrix characteristics of air particulate matter as a prerequisite for global monitoring of air pollution is discussed. A new approach for sampling urban dust using large volume filtering devices installed in air conditioners of large hotel buildings is assessed. A first experiment was initiated to collect air particulates (300-500 g each) from a number of hotels during a period of 3-4 months by successive vacuum cleaning of used inlet filters from high volume air conditioning installations reflecting average concentrations per 3 months in different large cities. This approach is expected to be upgraded and applied for global monitoring. Highly positive correlated elements were found in lichens such as K/S, Zn/P, the rare earth elements (REE) and a significant negative correlation between Hg and Cu was observed in these samples. The ratio of concentrations of elements in dust and Usnea spp. is highest for Cz, Zn and Fe (400-200) and lowest for elements such as Ca, Rb, and Sr (20-10).