Recent Occurrence of PAHs and n-Alkanes in PM2.5 in Seoul, Korea and Characteristics of their Sources and Toxicity.

Minkyung Kang,Kiae Kim,Ji Yi Lee,Yong Pyo Kim,Narae Choi

doi:10.3390/ijerph17041397

Abstract

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) and n-alkanes in particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5) were quantified at Seoul, Korea in 2018. The seasonal differences in the total concentration of PAHs and n-Alkanes were clear, where winter showed a higher concentration than that of summer. Compared to the PAHs measurements in 2002 at Seoul, the sum of PAHs concentrations in 2018 were reduced from 26.6 to 5.6 ng m−3. Major sources of the observed PAHs and n-alkanes were deduced from various indicators such as diagnostic ratios for PAHs and Cmax, CPI, and WNA (%) indices for n-alkanes. It was found that in winter coal and biomass combustions, and vehicular exhaust were major sources, while, in summer vehicular exhaust was major source. In addition, in winter, major emission sources were located outside of Seoul. The health effect from the recent level of PAHs was estimated and compared to the previous studies observed in Seoul, and it was found that, recently, the toxicity of PAHs in PM2.5 was significantly decreased, except for in the winter.

Highlights

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are carbon-structured organic compounds that consist of two or more benzene rings
The objective of this study is to (1) evaluate the recent PAH concentrations in Seoul, South Korea with seasonal characteristics of PAHs, and (2) identify the major sources of PAHs in this area based on the Principle Component Analysis (PCA) with the various diagnostic ratios of PAHs and index of n-Alkanes
We found that recent PAH concentrations in PM2.5 in Seoul, Korea were affected by the combination of solid fuel combustion and vehicular emissions in the winter season by the diagnostics ratio and PCA result

Summary

Introduction

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are carbon-structured organic compounds that consist of two or more benzene rings. They are not emitted as a single species, but as a mixture, and their sources are incomplete combustion of fossil fuels such as vehicle emissions, coal combustion, and biomass burning [1,2]. PAHs are significant indicators relating to the adverse health effects of particulate matters (PMs) due to their carcinogenic properties. Has established a health-based standard for PAHs which targets PAHs concentration in ambient air to 1 ng m−3 , expressed as concentration of Benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) [3].

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