Novel Brominated Flame Retardants in Dust from E-Waste-Dismantling Workplace in Central China: Contamination Status and Human Exposure Assessment
Novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) have been widely used as alternatives to legacy BFRs. However, information on the contamination status and human exposure risks of electronic waste (e-waste)-derived NBFRs in the e-waste workplace is limited. In this study, six NBFRs and the legacy BFRs, hex...
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MDPI AG
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Toxics |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2305-6304/11/1/58 |
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| author | Xuelin Li Yu Wang Wenbin Bai Qiuyue Zhang Leicheng Zhao Zhipeng Cheng Hongkai Zhu Hongwen Sun |
| author_facet | Xuelin Li Yu Wang Wenbin Bai Qiuyue Zhang Leicheng Zhao Zhipeng Cheng Hongkai Zhu Hongwen Sun |
| author_sort | Xuelin Li |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) have been widely used as alternatives to legacy BFRs. However, information on the contamination status and human exposure risks of electronic waste (e-waste)-derived NBFRs in the e-waste workplace is limited. In this study, six NBFRs and the legacy BFRs, hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs), were analyzed in 50 dust samples from an e-waste-dismantling workplace in Central China. The dust concentration of NBFRs in e-waste-dismantling workshops (median, 157–169 ng/g) was found to be significantly higher than those in an outdoor environment (17.3 ng/g) (<i>p</i> < 0.01). Differently, the highest median concentration of HBCDs was found in dust from the dismantling workshop for cellphones and computers (367 ng/g) among studied areas. The bis(2-ethylhexyl)-3,4,5,6-tetrabromo-phthalate (BEHTBP) was the predominant compound, which contributed 66.0–88.0% of measured NBFR concentrations. NBFRs might originate from plastic and rubber materials in wastes based on the correlation and principal component analysis. Moreover, the total estimated daily intakes (average scenario) of NBFRs were calculated at 2.64 × 10<sup>−2</sup> ng/kg bw/d and 2.91× 10<sup>−2</sup> ng/kg bw/d for the male and female dismantling workers, respectively, via dust ingestion, inhalation, and dermal contact pathways, which were lower than the reference dose values, and thus indicated a limited human exposure risk for NBFRs at the current level. Although the dust concentrations and daily intakes of NBFRs were still lower than those of other emerging pollutants (e.g., organophosphate and nitrogenous flame retardants) measured in the same sampling set, the elevated levels of NBFRs suggested the progressive BFR replacement process in China, which deserves more attention regarding their adverse effects on both the environment and human health. |
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| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
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| spelling | doaj.art-1b13dcf845904ab5aa34aa8de46b61c52023-12-01T00:55:48ZengMDPI AGToxics2305-63042023-01-011115810.3390/toxics11010058Novel Brominated Flame Retardants in Dust from E-Waste-Dismantling Workplace in Central China: Contamination Status and Human Exposure AssessmentXuelin Li0Yu Wang1Wenbin Bai2Qiuyue Zhang3Leicheng Zhao4Zhipeng Cheng5Hongkai Zhu6Hongwen Sun7MOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaMOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaMOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaMOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaMOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaMOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaMOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaMOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, ChinaNovel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) have been widely used as alternatives to legacy BFRs. However, information on the contamination status and human exposure risks of electronic waste (e-waste)-derived NBFRs in the e-waste workplace is limited. In this study, six NBFRs and the legacy BFRs, hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs), were analyzed in 50 dust samples from an e-waste-dismantling workplace in Central China. The dust concentration of NBFRs in e-waste-dismantling workshops (median, 157–169 ng/g) was found to be significantly higher than those in an outdoor environment (17.3 ng/g) (<i>p</i> < 0.01). Differently, the highest median concentration of HBCDs was found in dust from the dismantling workshop for cellphones and computers (367 ng/g) among studied areas. The bis(2-ethylhexyl)-3,4,5,6-tetrabromo-phthalate (BEHTBP) was the predominant compound, which contributed 66.0–88.0% of measured NBFR concentrations. NBFRs might originate from plastic and rubber materials in wastes based on the correlation and principal component analysis. Moreover, the total estimated daily intakes (average scenario) of NBFRs were calculated at 2.64 × 10<sup>−2</sup> ng/kg bw/d and 2.91× 10<sup>−2</sup> ng/kg bw/d for the male and female dismantling workers, respectively, via dust ingestion, inhalation, and dermal contact pathways, which were lower than the reference dose values, and thus indicated a limited human exposure risk for NBFRs at the current level. Although the dust concentrations and daily intakes of NBFRs were still lower than those of other emerging pollutants (e.g., organophosphate and nitrogenous flame retardants) measured in the same sampling set, the elevated levels of NBFRs suggested the progressive BFR replacement process in China, which deserves more attention regarding their adverse effects on both the environment and human health.https://www.mdpi.com/2305-6304/11/1/58NBFRsHBCDse-waste-dismantling areadust ingestionestimated daily intakes |
| spellingShingle | Xuelin Li Yu Wang Wenbin Bai Qiuyue Zhang Leicheng Zhao Zhipeng Cheng Hongkai Zhu Hongwen Sun Novel Brominated Flame Retardants in Dust from E-Waste-Dismantling Workplace in Central China: Contamination Status and Human Exposure Assessment Toxics NBFRs HBCDs e-waste-dismantling area dust ingestion estimated daily intakes |
| title | Novel Brominated Flame Retardants in Dust from E-Waste-Dismantling Workplace in Central China: Contamination Status and Human Exposure Assessment |
| title_full | Novel Brominated Flame Retardants in Dust from E-Waste-Dismantling Workplace in Central China: Contamination Status and Human Exposure Assessment |
| title_fullStr | Novel Brominated Flame Retardants in Dust from E-Waste-Dismantling Workplace in Central China: Contamination Status and Human Exposure Assessment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Novel Brominated Flame Retardants in Dust from E-Waste-Dismantling Workplace in Central China: Contamination Status and Human Exposure Assessment |
| title_short | Novel Brominated Flame Retardants in Dust from E-Waste-Dismantling Workplace in Central China: Contamination Status and Human Exposure Assessment |
| title_sort | novel brominated flame retardants in dust from e waste dismantling workplace in central china contamination status and human exposure assessment |
| topic | NBFRs HBCDs e-waste-dismantling area dust ingestion estimated daily intakes |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2305-6304/11/1/58 |
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