Native and oxygenated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air particulate matter from the city of Sulaimaniyah in Iraq. (September 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ahmed, Trifa M.; Ahmed, Baram; Aziz, Bakhtyar K.; Bergvall, Christoffer; Westerholm, Roger
• Is Part Of: Atmospheric environment. Volume 116(2015)
• Page Start: 44
• Page End: 50
• Publication Date: 2015-09
• Subjects: Ambient air -- Particulates -- Oxygenated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons -- Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons -- Benzo[a]pyrene -- Dibenzopyrenes -- Anthraquinone; Air -- Pollution -- Periodicals; Air -- Pollution -- Meteorological aspects -- Periodicals; 551.51
• DOI: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2015.06.020
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1352-2310

Abstract

Abstract: The concentrations of 43 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and 4 oxygenated PAHs (OPAHs) are reported for the first time in particulate matter (PM10 ) sampled in the air of the city of Sulaimaniyah in Iraq. The total PAH concentration at the different sampling sites varied between 9.3 and 114 ng/m 3 . The corresponding values of the human carcinogen benzo[ a ]pyrene were between 0.3 and 6.9 ng/m 3, with most samples exceeding the EU annual target value of 1 ng/m 3 . The highly carcinogenic dibenzopyrene isomers dibenzo[ a, l ]pyrene, dibenzo[ a, e ]pyrene, dibenzo[ a, i ]pyrene and dibenzo[ a, h ]pyrene constituted 0.1–0.4% of the total PAH concentration. However, when scaling for relative cancer potencies using toxic equivalency factors, a benzo[ a ]pyrene equivalent concentration of dibenzo[ a, l ]pyrene equal to that of benzo[ a ]pyrene was obtained, indicating that the contribution of dibenzo[ a, l ]pyrene to the carcinogenicity of the PAHs could be similar to that of benzo[ a ]pyrene. A high correlation between the determined concentrations of the dibenzopyrene isomers and benzo[ a ]pyrene was found, which supported the use of benzo[ a ]pyrene as an indicator for the carcinogenicity of PAHs in ambient air. The total concentrations of the four OPAHs, 9, 10-anthraquinone, 4H-cyclopenta[ def ]phenanthren-4-one, benzanthrone, and 7, 12-benz[ a ]anthraquinone, varied between 0.6 and 8.1 ng/m 3, with 9, 10-anthraquinone being the most abundant OPAH in all of the samples. Highlights: The first reported air concentrations of PAHs and oxygenated PAHs in PM10 from Iraq. Mean benzo[ a ]pyrene concentration exceeded the EU target value. The dibenzopyrene and benzo[ a ]pyrene concentrations were highly correlated.