Abstract
This study was carried out to determine the concentration of lead (Pb), anions, and cations at six primary schools located around Kuala Lumpur. Low volume sampler (MiniVol PM10) was used to collect the suspended particulates in indoor and outdoor air. Results showed that the concentration of Pb in indoor air was in the range of 5.18 ± 1.08 μg/g–7.01 ± 0.08 μg/g. All the concentrations of Pb in indoor air were higher than in outdoor air at all sampling stations. The concentrations of cations and anions were higher in outdoor air than in indoor air. The concentration of Ca2+ (39.51 ± 5.01 mg/g–65.13 ± 9.42 mg/g) was the highest because the cation existed naturally in soil dusts, while the concentrations of NO3 − and SO4 2− were higher in outdoor air because there were more sources of exposure for anions in outdoor air, such as highly congested traffic and motor vehicles emissions. In comparison, the concentration of NO3 − (29.72 ± 0.31 μg/g–32.00 ± 0.75 μg/g) was slightly higher than SO4 2−. The concentrations of most of the parameters in this study, such as Mg2+, Ca2+, NO3 −, SO4 2−, and Pb2+, were higher in outdoor air than in indoor air at all sampling stations.
Highlights
Air pollution is generally the most widespread and obvious kind of environmental damage [1]
This paper reports the concentration of lead, cations, and anions in air at the primary schools in Kuala Lumpur
This study was conducted in Kuala Lumpur, which is a city characterised with highly congested traffic city
Summary
Air pollution is generally the most widespread and obvious kind of environmental damage [1]. Kuala Lumpur, which is the federal capital and the largest city in Malaysia, is suffering from air pollution problem. With the increase in energy consumption and urbanization in Kuala Lumpur, the increase in ambient air pollution seems inevitable [2]. Air pollutants, which exist in the form of solid, semisolid, liquid, and gas, are emitted directly or indirectly from their sources. Some heavy metals such as lead and cadmium are common environmental pollutants in industrialised and developing countries [3]. Children are more vulnerable to lead exposure than adults because children have higher hand-to-mouth activities and higher rate of gastrointestinal absorption, and their developing brains are more sensitive to insults from lead exposure [6]
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