Health Risk Assessment of Road-Dust-Bound Heavy Metals via Ingestion Exposure from One Typical Inland City of Northern China: Incorporation of Sources and Bioaccessibility

Shuo Chen, Lei Han, Yushuang Wu, Xiaojuan Liu, Chenglang Liu, Yuzhen Liu, Hongbo Li and Jie Li ()
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Shuo Chen: College of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250358, China
Lei Han: Jinan Environmental Research Institute (Jinan Yellow River Basin Ecological Protection Promotion Center), Jinan 250100, China
Yushuang Wu: College of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250358, China
Xiaojuan Liu: Jinan Ecological Environment Monitoring Center Jiyang Branch Center, Jinan 251400, China
Chenglang Liu: College of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250358, China
Yuzhen Liu: College of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250358, China
Hongbo Li: State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
Jie Li: College of Geography and Environment, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250358, China

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 15, 1-16

Abstract: Heavy metals in road dust pose potential health risks to humans, while oral bioaccessibility and sources are all important factors influencing this health risk. However, few prior studies have combined them for health risk analysis. In this study, road dust samples were collected from different geographical locations of Jinan (west area, WA; central area, CA; and east area, EA) to analyze the source-specific and bioaccessibility-based health risks of heavy metals. The mean concentrations of heavy metals in the three areas were CA > EA > WA, with Cd, Cu, Mn, Pb, and Zn exceeding their corresponding background values. A source analysis using a Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) model showed that traffic emissions were the main source of heavy metals in the WA and CA, while industrial activities were the main source in the EA. The mean bioaccessibility of heavy metals extracted using the Solubility Bioaccessibility Research Consortium (SBRC) method followed the order of Cd (75.5%) > Zn (42.2%) > Mn (42.1%) > Pb (42.0%) > Cu (32.9%) > As (23.6%) > Ni (20.1%) > V (16.8%) > Cr (13.3%). According to the combined source analysis, traffic was the primary risk factor in the WA (54.5 and 58.3% of NCR and CR, respectively) and CA (61.8 and 51.2%), with solid waste being the main risk factor in the EA (41.9 and 51.3%). In oral bioaccessibility testing, lower non-carcinogenic (<1.0) and carcinogenic risks (<1 × 10 −6 ) of heavy metals were observed than those based on the total metal content. More importantly, As (43.4%) was replaced by V (29.7%) as the main contributor to NCR. Source-specific and bioaccessibility-based health risk assessments can accurately identify priority pollutants and heavy metals in urban road dust that need to be controlled. This provides more effective and accurate urban environmental risk management recommendations for sustainable urban development and population health.

Keywords: heavy metals; road dust; pollution sources; bioaccessibility; health risk assessment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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