PM Origin or Exposure Duration? Health Hazards from PM-Bound Mercury and PM-Bound PAHs among Students and Lecturers

Grzegorz Majewski, Kamila Widziewicz, Wioletta Rogula-Kozłowska, Patrycja Rogula-Kopiec, Karolina Kociszewska, Tomasz Rozbicki, Małgorzata Majder-Łopatka and Mariusz Niemczyk
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Grzegorz Majewski: Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 166 Nowoursynowska St., 02-776 Warsaw, Poland
Kamila Widziewicz: Institute of Environmental Engineering, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 M. Skłodowska-Curie St., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
Wioletta Rogula-Kozłowska: Institute of Environmental Engineering, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 M. Skłodowska-Curie St., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
Patrycja Rogula-Kopiec: Institute of Environmental Engineering, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 M. Skłodowska-Curie St., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
Karolina Kociszewska: Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 166 Nowoursynowska St., 02-776 Warsaw, Poland
Tomasz Rozbicki: Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, 166 Nowoursynowska St., 02-776 Warsaw, Poland
Małgorzata Majder-Łopatka: Faculty of Fire Safety Engineering, The Main School of Fire Service, 52/54 Słowackiego St., 01-629 Warsaw, Poland
Mariusz Niemczyk: Department of Immunology, Transplant Medicine and Internal Diseases, Medical University of Warsaw, Nowogrodzka 59, 02-006 Warsaw, Poland

IJERPH, 2018, vol. 15, issue 2, 1-19

Abstract: This study assessed inhalation exposure to particulate matter (PM 1 )-bound mercury (Hg p ) and PM 1 -bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) among university students. For this purpose, simultaneous indoor (I) and outdoor (O) measurements were taken from two Polish technical universities (in Gliwice and Warsaw) located in distinct areas with respect to ambient concentrations and major sources of PM. The indoor geometric mean concentrations of Hg p were found to be 1.46 pg·m −3 and 6.38 pg·m −3 in Warsaw and Gliwice, while the corresponding outdoor concentrations were slightly lower at 1.38 pg·m −3 and 3.03 pg·m −3 , respectively. A distinct pattern was found with respect to PAH concentrations with estimated I/O values of 22.2 ng·m −3 /22.5 ng·m −3 in Gliwice and 10.9 ng·m −3 /11.12 ng·m −3 in Warsaw. Hazard quotients (HQs) as a result of exposure to Hg p for students aged 21 ranged from 3.47 × 10 −5 (Warsaw) to 1.3 × 10 −4 (Gliwice) in terms of reasonable maximum exposure (RME). The non-cancer human health risk value related to Hg p exposure was thus found to be below the acceptable risk level value of 1.0 given by the US EPA. Daily exposure values for lecture hall occupants, adjusted to the benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) toxicity equivalent (BaP eq ), were 2.9 and 1.02 ng·m −3 for the Gliwice and Warsaw students, respectively. The incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) values with respect to exposure to PM 1 -bound PAHs during the students’ time of study were 5.49 × 10 −8 (Warsaw) and 1.43 × 10 −7 (Gliwice). Thus, students’ exposure to indoor PAHs does not lead to increased risk of lung cancer.

Keywords: indoor air quality; mercury; PAHs; health risk assessment; universities; lecture rooms; Poland (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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