Low Pop Research Articles

Extremely high levels of PBDEs in children’s toys from European markets: causes and implications for the circular economy

BackgroundWith the high influx of low-cost plastic toys on the market, there is growing concern about the safety of such toys. Some of these plastic toys contains hazardous chemicals like polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) due to the use of recycled plastics in new toy manufacturing. Here, we investigated if toys marketed in Europe are compliant with EU directives to assess the safety of currently used children's toys and identify implications of PBDE content in toys.ResultsEighty-four toys purchased from international toy retailers were screened for bromine using X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and 11 of those with bromine content higher than 500 µg/g were analyzed for ten PBDEs using GC–HRMS. PBDEs were detected in all 11 toys. Ʃ10PBDE concentrations ranged up to 23.5 mg/g (with a median concentration of 8.61 mg/g), with BDE-209 being the most abundant compound (4.40 mg/g). Eight samples exceeded the EU’s Low POP Content Limit (LPCL) of 500 µg/g for the Ʃ10PBDEs by 6–47 times and the Unintentional Trace Contaminant (UTC) limits of 10 µg/g for Deca-BDE by 12–800 times.ConclusionsPBDEs were up to percent levels, suggesting direct recycling of flame retarded plastic, e.g., e-waste plastics, into toy components. This is a call for concern and requires intervention from all stakeholders involved in the toy market. Overall, the occurrence of non-compliant toys in the EU market, as indicated in this study is primarily attributed to gaps in regulations, inadequate legislation for recycled plastics, the rise of online sales, complexities in global and national supply chains, and economic challenges. Failure to address these issues will hinder the efforts of the plastics industry to transition into a circular economy. This suggests that more actions are needed to address gaps in cross-border enforcement, and stricter sanctions are required for toy manufacturers who fail to adhere to regulations and safety standards.

Metal Ballads as Low Pop? An Approach to Sentimentality and Gendered Performances in Popular Hard Rock and Metal Songs

Ballads are often among the bestselling songs of heavy metal and hard rock bands. Within these genres, ballads represent a way to address emotions such as love that are not part of the primary self-understanding of those genres. Still, “genre ideals and style” often seem to be at odds with the sentimental aesthetics of the ballad and its emotional expression and experience. In this article, we take a close look at the sonic, textual, performative, visual, and emotional-somatic articulation of love and the generation of sentimentality in three selected metal ballads. Even if the term “power ballad,” which is often used in reference to hard rock and metal ballads, refers to the simultaneity of “heaviness” in the sound and the thematization of love in the lyrics, sentimental ballads in the stereotypically more masculine-connotated genres nevertheless create friction and skepticism in their discursive evaluation, as they generate aesthetic discrepancies between concrete songs and genre conventions. Their quantitative popularity contrasts with their qualitative evaluation. Therefore, in a second step, we analyze the reception of the selected ballads, in particular their discursive evaluations in music reviews, in order to point out the ways of argumentation through which frictions are established. As a result, we show that evaluations are related to how love is addressed in the songs and to the extent of proximity of the ballads to genre rules.

Abstract 11959: Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing Delineates Multiple Contributing Factors to Poor Exercise Performance in Childhood Cancer Survivors

Background: Childhood cancer survivors (CCS) show decreased exercise performance despite normal ventricular function at rest. Multiple underlying mechanisms are considered. Methods: Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) was performed in asymptomatic off-treatment CCS. Patients were divided into four groups by their peak oxygen consumption (pVO2) at 35 and 25 ml/kg/min in males and females, respectively (“Good” and “Poor” performance groups). * denotes weight-indexed values. Data are shown as mean ± standard deviation. Results: Demographic and CPET data are presented in Table 1. There was no notable correlation between total anthracycline dosage and CPET values. Weight, body mass index, and peak respiratory exchange ratio were significantly higher in “Poor” groups in both sexes. Peak oxygen pulse (pOP*) and ventilatory anaerobic threshold (VAT*) were significantly lower whereas heart rate (HR) dependency on work rate (WR*) (= ΔHR/ΔWR*) was significantly higher in “Poor” groups than in “Good” groups. There was no difference in ventilatory efficiency presented as a slope of ventilation (VE)/carbon dioxide output (VCO2)(ΔVE/ΔVCO2). Figure 1 demonstrated the relationship between weight and pVO2 (L/min) and between ΔHR/ΔWR* and pOP*, showing distinct difference between “Good” and “Poor” performers in both sexes; “Poor” performers revealed lower skeletal mass and stroke volume effects. Conclusions: Treatment-mediated cardiotoxicity is not the only cause of poor exercise performance in CCS. In addition to limited stroke volume indicated by lower pOP* with higher HR dependency, skeletal muscle loss and increased BMI mitigated the overall exercise performance.

An overview of methods to address distinct research questions on environmental mixtures: an application to persistent organic pollutants and leukocyte telomere length

BackgroundNumerous methods exist to analyze complex environmental mixtures in health studies. As an illustration of the different uses of mixture methods, we employed methods geared toward distinct research questions concerning persistent organic chemicals (POPs) as a mixture and leukocyte telomere length (LTL) as an outcome.MethodsWith information on 18 POPs and LTL among 1,003 U.S. adults (NHANES, 2001–2002), we used unsupervised methods including clustering to identify profiles of similarly exposed participants, and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) to identify common exposure patterns. We also employed supervised learning techniques, including penalized, weighted quantile sum (WQS), and Bayesian kernel machine (BKMR) regressions, to identify potentially toxic agents, and characterize nonlinear associations, interactions, and the overall mixture effect.ResultsClustering separated participants into high, medium, and low POP exposure groups; longer log-LTL was found among those with high exposure. The first PCA component represented overall POP exposure and was positively associated with log-LTL. Two EFA factors, one representing furans and the other PCBs 126 and 118, were positively associated with log-LTL. Penalized regression methods selected three congeners in common (PCB 126, PCB 118, and furan 2,3,4,7,8-pncdf) as potentially toxic agents. WQS found a positive overall effect of the POP mixture and identified six POPs as potentially toxic agents (furans 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-hxcdf, 2,3,4,7,8-pncdf, and 1,2,3,6,7,8-hxcdf, and PCBs 99, 126, 169). BKMR found a positive linear association with furan 2,3,4,7,8-pncdf, suggestive evidence of linear associations with PCBs 126 and 169, and a positive overall effect of the mixture, but no interactions among congeners.ConclusionsUsing different methods, we identified patterns of POP exposure, potentially toxic agents, the absence of interaction, and estimated the overall mixture effect. These applications and results may serve as a guide for mixture method selection based on specific research questions.

Role of ENSO Conditions on Particulate Organic Matter Concentrations and Elemental Ratios in the Southern California Bight

El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) influences multi-year variation in sea-surface temperature and the intensity of upwelling in many Pacific regions. However, it is currently unknown how El Niño conditions will affect the concentration and elemental ratios of particulate organic matter (POM). To test this, we have been quantifying POM weekly for six years (2012 to 2017) at the MICRO time-series station in the Southern California Bight. We found a strong influence of the 2015 El Niño on sea-surface temperature and phosphate concentration but to a lesser extent on nitrate availability. The 2015 El Niño also resulted in low POC and POP concentrations, whereas PON concentrations declined by 26% during the whole sampling period. The changes in POM concentrations led to high C:P and N:P ratios. Following the changes in PON, C:N continued to climb reaching ~9.4 at the end of the sampling. We suggest that an Eastern Pacific- vs. a Central Pacific-type El Niño as well as a switch in the Pacific Decadal Oscillation phase influenced the local response in POM concentrations and ratios.

Portable X-ray fluorescence for the detection of POP-BFRs in waste plastics

The purpose of this study was to establish the efficacy of portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) instrumentation as a screening tool for a variety of end of life plastics which may contain excess amounts of brominated flame retardants (BFRs), in compliance with European Union (EU) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) legislative limits (low POP concentration limits – LPCLs). 555 samples of waste plastics were collected from eight waste and recycling sites in Ireland, including waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), textiles, polyurethane foams (PUFs), and expanded polystyrene foams. Samples were screened for bromine content, in situ using a Niton™ XL3T GOLDD XRF analyser, the results of which were statistically compared to mass spectrometry (MS)-based measurements of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) and tetrabromobisphenol-A (TBBP-A) concentrations in the same samples.Regression between XRF and MS for WEEE samples shows that, despite an overall favourable trend, large deviations occur for a cluster of samples indicative of other bromine-based compounds in some samples; even compensating for false-positives due to background interference from electronic components, XRF tends to over-estimate MS-determined BFR concentrations in the 100 to 10,000 mg kg−1 range. Substantial deviations were additionally found between results for PUFs, textiles and polystyrene samples, with the XRF over-estimating BFR concentrations by a factor of up to 1.9; this is likely due to matrix effects influencing XRF measurements. However, expanded (EPS) and extruded polystyrene (XPS) yielded much more reliable estimations of BFR-content due to a dominance of HBCDD in these materials.XRF proved much more reliable as a “pass/fail” screening tool for LPCL compliance (including a prospective LPCL on Deca-BDE based on REACH). Using a conservative threshold of BFR content exceeding legislative limits (710 mg kg−1 bromine attributed to Penta-BDE), XRF mistakenly identifies only 6 % of samples (34/555) as exceeding legislative limits.

Hexabromocyclododecane in polystyrene packaging: A downside of recycling?

While there are no regulatory fire safety obligations for polystyrene (PS) when used as packaging material, concerns exist that such packaging material may contain the flame retardant hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) as a result of uncontrolled recycling activities. To evaluate these concerns, we collected 50 samples of PS packaging materials from the UK and 20 from Ireland. HBCDD was detected in 63 (90%) of samples, with concentrations in 4 samples from Ireland exceeding the EU's low POP concentration limit (LPCL) of 0.1% above which articles may not be recycled. Moreover, 2 further samples contained HBCDD >0.01%. While our samples were obtained in the 12 month period prior to the March 2016 introduction of the EU's 0.01% concentration limit above which articles may not be placed on the market, our data suggest that continued monitoring is required to assess compliance with this limit value. Ratios of α vs. γ-HBCDD in our EPS packaging samples (average = 0.63) exceeded significantly (p = 0.025) those in EPS building insulation material samples (average = 0.24) reported previously for Ireland. This shift towards α-HBCDD in packaging EPS is consistent with the additional thermal processing experienced by recycled PS and suggests the source of HBCDD in PS packaging is recycled PS insulation foam. This is of concern owing to the higher bioavailability and lower metabolic clearance of α-HBCDD compared to the β- and γ-isomers.

Brominated flame retardants in Irish waste polymers: Concentrations, legislative compliance, and treatment options

A comprehensive survey was performed to construct an inventory of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) associated with waste polymers in Ireland. Based on our data, ~2200 t/yr of waste generated in Ireland exceeds “Low POP Concentration Limits” (LPCLs) set by the European Commission, of 1000 mg/kg of PBDEs (BDE-209 excluded) and HBCDD – collectively referred to as POP-BFRs. Waste articles containing concentrations exceeding the LPCL values require special treatment to remove POP-BFRs before they can be recycled. Waste articles exceeding LPCLs in our study consist primarily of expanded polystyrene used as building insulation (44%), waste furniture foams and fabrics (41%), with waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) accounting for 13% and end of life vehicle waste contributing 1.7%. The recent listing of Deca-BDE under the Stockholm Convention means that a similar LPCL for its principal congener (BDE-209) is likely. Our data show that enforcement of an LPCL of 1000 mg/kg for BDE-209 would result in a further 1650 t/year of waste articles requiring special treatment. Our data show there to be 17,125 kg of POP-BFRs associated with waste polymers generated annually in Ireland. Enforcement of current LPCL values would prevent approximately 98% of these POP-BFRs from entering recycled goods. Introduction and enforcement of a similar LPCL for BDE-209 would prevent 93% of the 15,518 kg/yr of BDE-209 associated with Irish waste polymers from entering the recycling stream.

Impact of the addition of cocoa butter equivalent on the volatile compounds profile of dark chocolate.

The effect of the partial replacement of cocoa butter (CB) by cocoa butter equivalent (CBE) in the release of volatile compounds in dark chocolate was studied. The fatty acid profile, triacylglyceride composition, solid fat content (SFC) and melting point were determined in CB and CBE. Chocolate with CB (F1) and with different content of CBE (5 and 10%-F2 and F3, respectively) were prepared. Plastic viscosity and Casson flow limit, particle size distribution and release of volatile compounds using a solid phase microextraction with gas chromatography (SMPE-GC) were determined in the chocolate samples. The melting point was similar for the studied samples but SFC indicated different melting behavior. CBE showed a higher saturated fatty acid content when compared to CB. The samples showed similar SOS triglyceride content (21 and 23.7% for CB and CBE, respectively). Higher levels of POS and lower POP were observed for CB when compared to CBE (44.8 and 19.7 and 19 and 41.1%, respectively). The flow limit and plastic viscosity were similar for the studied chocolates samples, as well as the particle size distribution. Among the 27 volatile compounds identified in the samples studied, 12 were detected in significantly higher concentrations in sample F1 (phenylacetaldehyde, methylpyrazine, 2,6-dimethylpyrazine, 2-ethyl-5-methylpyrazine, 2-ethyl-3,5-dimethylpyrazine, tetramethylpyrazine, trimethylpyrazine, 3-ethyl-2,5-dimethylpyrazine, phenethyl alcohol, 2-acetylpyrrole, acetophenone and isovaleric acid). The highest changes were observed in the pyrazines group, which presented a decrease of more than half in the formulations where part of the CB was replaced by the CBE.

Biomonitoring of selected persistent organic pollutants (PCDD/Fs, PCBs and PBDEs) in Finnish and Russian terrestrial and aquatic animal species.

BackgroundThe Finnish and Russian animal species (semi-domesticated reindeer, Finnish wild moose, Baltic grey seal and Baltic herring) samples were biomonitored in terrestrial and aquatic environments for polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polybrominated diphenylethers (PBDEs).ResultsGrey seal (Halichoerus grypus) was clearly the most contaminated species. The mean PBDE concentration in grey seal was 115 ng/g fat, and the highest WHO-PCDD/F-PCB-TEQ (toxic equivalent set by WHO) was 327 pg/g fat. In Finnish, reindeer WHO-PCDD/F-TEQ varied from 0.92 pg/g fat in muscle to 90.8 pg/g fat in liver. WHO-PCDD/F-TEQ in moose liver samples was in the range of 0.7–4.26 pg/g fat, and WHO-PCB-TEQ in the range of 0.42–3.34 pg/g fat. Overall moose had clearly lower PCDD/F and DL-PCB concentrations in their liver than reindeer.ConclusionsTerrestrial animals generally had low POP concentrations, but in reindeer liver dioxin levels were quite high. All Finnish and Russian reindeer liver samples exceeded the EU maximum level [8] for PCDD/Fs (10 pg/g fat), which is currently set for bovine animals.

Levels of persistent organic pollutants in larvae of the damselfly Ischnura elegans (Odonata, Coenagrionidae) from different ponds in Flanders, Belgium

We investigated the accumulation of persistent organic pollutants in damselfly larvae (Ischnura elegans) in sixteen ponds in Flanders (Belgium), widely differing in the surrounding land use. Concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), p,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (p,p'-DDE) and hexachlorobenzene (HCB) were measured. From all targeted PBDE-congeners, only three congeners (IUPAC nos. 47, 99, 100) were above the limit of quantification (LOQ). The ∑PBDE concentrations ranged from <LOQ up to 0.51ngg−1 ww. From the targeted PCB-congeners, thirteen were detectable (IUPAC nos. 95, 99, 101, 105, 118, 138, 149, 153, 156, 170, 180, 183, and 187). A high variation in ∑PCB concentrations was observed between the ponds, ranging from <LOQ (0.67ngg−1 ww) up to 9.91ngg−1 ww in the damselflies from the pond at Sijsele. In all investigated Flemish ponds, p,p'-DDE concentrations were >LOQ (0.20ngg−1 ww) with values up to 3.30ngg−1 ww in the pond at Hamme. In fifteen ponds, the HCB concentrations were >LOQ (0.05ngg−1 ww) with values up to 0.24ngg−1 ww. For the available data in the literature a comparison with different species was done for some of the sampled ponds. The monitored ponds can be separated in three groups based on their contamination. The first group is characterised by a relative low POP content (∑PBDEs, ∑PCBs, HCB). Group 2 contained more HCB and p,p'-DDE than the overall mean while this was the case for PBDEs and PCBs in group 3. The vectors of both contaminated groups are situated nearly perpendicular which is suggesting a different pollution sources.

Hydrothermal Synthesis of Hydroxyapatite from Calcium Sulfate Hemihydrate

Commercial grade calcium sulfate hemihydrate (CaSO4· 0.5H2O, or plaster of paris, PoP) an economically feasible and abundant precursor has been used in (Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2, HAp) synthesis. The synthesis was realized by reacting solid PoP precursor with 1M of (NH4)2HPO4 aqueous solution, at ambient and mild hydrothermal conditions (2 ± 0.2 atm and 120 ° C). The effect of reaction temperature and pressure on PoP to HAp conversion efficiencies and reaction kinetics has been reported. The formation of HAp at a reaction temperature lower than 50 C occurs at very limited extend; at 25 C HAp formation starts after 7 days. Extending the reaction time for low temperature reactions improves the HAp formation efficiency, meanwhile this also promotes precipitation of another calcium phosphate- CaHPO4 · 2H2O together with HAp. At a reaction temperature of 90 C HAp formation completes in 6 hours. Hydrothermal reaction conditions on the other hand significantly enhances reaction kinetics, where the transformation to HAp starts in 15 min and finalizes only in 90 min. Hydrothermal reaction also hampers the formation of secondary phases, most likely originating from the impurities of low grade PoP precursor. The scanning electron microscopy analyses showed that HAp crystals are preferentially growing on the reactant PoP powders in a reticulated need-like morphology, suggesting a dissolution and reprecipitation mechanism for HAp formation. The findings showed that HAp synthesis can be accomplished by using a single and relatively cheap solid precursor under technological relevant hydrothermal conditions. Such synthesis routes can be practically expanded for making phase pure HAp powders in industrial scale.

국내 도료 및 제철·제강산업 발생 폐기물 중 잔류성 유기오염물질류의 함량 특성 -PCDD/DFs, PAHs, PCBs-

This study has been carried out in order to effectively manage three groups of unregulated hazardous organic substances (PCDD/DFs, PAHs, PCBs) in South Korea. The investigated substances have been analyzed according to the test methods for hazardous substances in specified wastes provided by the National Institute of Environmental Research, Korea. Total contents of the organic compounds have been determined for hazardous wastes from three major industrial categories (paint, iron removal, steelmaking), such as waste organic solvent, waste paint or dust. By investigating the waste samples for 7 PAHs using GC/MSD, Naphthalene has been detected (N.D~1631.33 mg/kg). The highest Naphthalene concentration, which exceeded the korean marine dumping waste standard, was found in waste organic solvents and waste paints. Although a content analysis of 7 PCB isomers has been conducted, none of these compounds was detected. The analysis of PCDD/DFs has revealed that all samples meet the criterion for low POP content defined in the technical guidelines developed under the Basel Convention. The PCDD/DFs content in dust samples deriving from 10 manufacturing processes (billet, bloom) was determined to be in the range of N.D~5.66 ng I-TEQ/g waste.

POPs in Mountain Soils from the Alps and Andes: Suggestions for a ‘Precipitation Effect’ on Altitudinal Gradients

POPs are still a priority environmental problem, but can be used as a scientific tool for understanding the distribution phenomena. Both high mountains and polar areas are seen as priority zones for contamination studies. In this context, two altitudinal series of soil samples were analysed for several classes of Persistent Organic Pollutants (PCBs, DDTs, HCHs, HCB and chlordane). Two transects were carried out – one in the Peruvian Andes (Cordillera Blanca) and the other in the Italian Alps (Mount Legnone). In these two areas, POP composition and levels both gave different results, linked to regional emission history. The Italian samples were characterized by high levels of industrial type compounds, and by surprisingly high DDT contamination, due to a defined consistent local source in Northern Italy. The Peruvian samples, on the other hand, were characterized by generally low POP levels with relatively high DDT contamination. The concentration increase in line with elevation was evident only in the Italian transect, where higher precipitation intensities and an increasingly higher precipitation gradient in accordance with altitude was found present. Precipitations are considered a key factor for enhancing the condensation effect at high altitudes and for reducing summer revolatilisation, as they lower soil temperature. In the Italian altitudinal gradient, evidence of fractionation processes, with a shift of the PCB composition towards less chlorinated congeners, and a vegetation effect with a mean woodland/grassland enrichment factor between 2 and 4 were also observed.

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Use of the Lincoln Index Mark-Recapture Method to Estimate the Population Densities for Harvestable Yabbies, Cherax destructor, in Grow-Out Ponds

The Lin coln In dex mark-re cap ture method was eval u ated for its ac cu racy in es ti mat ing the num ber of harvestable yab bies, Cherax de struc tor, in earthen ponds. Where a sin gle re cap ture event was used to es ti mate the pop u la tion, a 3 to 6 day in ter val be tween the re lease and recap ture of marked an i mals tended to pro vide a more re li able es ti mate than a re lease and re cap ture in ter val of 24 hours. Where two re cap ture events were used to pro vide an av er age es ti mate, the method tended to un der es ti mate by 20% low den sity pop u la tions, that had been the sub ject of pre da tion by wa ter birds, whereas those es ti mates de ter mined f o r ponds with higher den si ties of cray fish, where avian piscivores were excluded, tended to be more ac cu rate (±10%). The ap pli ca tion of pop u la tion es ti ma tion as a tool for ar ti fi cial feed-man age ment is dis cussed.

Studies on crystallization kinetics of nylon 6-polyoxypropylene-nylon 6 copolymers

The crystllization kinetics of anionic-prepared nylon6-poly(oxypropylene) 1000-nylon 6 (NPN) block copolymers containing 1.20 to 8.76 wt% poly(oxypropylene)(POP) were studied. The thermograms of isothermal and nonisothermal differential scanning calorimetry of NPN block copolymers obtained were used for the study. The Avrami equation was used to analyze the isothermal crystallization of NPN nylon block copolymers. The Avrami exponent n obtained in the temperature range of 180 to 200 °C was 2.0 to 2.5. It was not similar to that for nylon 6 reported in literature. The activation energies of crystallization for the nylon block copolymers were smaller than that of nylon 6, and showed a minimum with POP content. The equilibrium melting point increased as the POP content decreased. For the nylon block copolymers with lower POP content, the slopes of Tcvs. Tm plots were higher than the values reported elsewhere. The Ozawa plot was used to analyze the data of nonisothermal crystallization. The obvious curvature in the plot indicated that the Ozawa model could not fit our system well, and there was an abrupt change of the slope in the Ozawa plot at a critical cooling rate.

A genetic study of popping quality in Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench)

Two crosses of sorghum, Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench (IS 1054 × ICSV-1, and IS 5604 × IS 1054) were evaluated in parental, F1, F2, and backcross generations for the variation in their popping quality as measured by pop volume (ml). Dominance was in the direction of low pop volume. Dominance and additive gene effects, in that order, governed most of the variation, while significant dominance x dominance type of interaction effects could also be detected. There was no evidence for higher order gene interactions.