Ambient Levels, Emission Sources and Health Effect of PM<sub>2.5</sub>-Bound Carbonaceous Particles and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the City of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
With increasing interest in understanding the contribution of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) to particulate air pollution in urban areas, an exploratory study was carried out to determine levels of carbonaceous aerosols and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the city of Kuala Lumpur, Malays...
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MDPI AG
2021-04-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/12/5/549 |
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| author | Hamidah Suradi Md Firoz Khan Nor Asrina Sairi Haasyimah Ab Rahim Sumiani Yusoff Yusuke Fujii Kai Qin Md. Aynul Bari Murnira Othman Mohd Talib Latif |
| author_facet | Hamidah Suradi Md Firoz Khan Nor Asrina Sairi Haasyimah Ab Rahim Sumiani Yusoff Yusuke Fujii Kai Qin Md. Aynul Bari Murnira Othman Mohd Talib Latif |
| author_sort | Hamidah Suradi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | With increasing interest in understanding the contribution of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) to particulate air pollution in urban areas, an exploratory study was carried out to determine levels of carbonaceous aerosols and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. PM<sub>2.5</sub> samples were collected using a high-volume sampler for 24 h in several areas in Kuala Lumpur during the north-easterly monsoon from January to March 2019. Samples were analyzed for water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC), organic carbon (OC), and elemental carbon (EC). Secondary organic carbon (SOC) in PM<sub>2.5</sub> was estimated. Particle-bound PAHs were analyzed using gas chromatography-flame ionization detector (GC-FID). Average concentrations of WSOC, OC, and EC were 2.73 ± 2.17 (range of 0.63–9.12) µg/m<sup>3</sup>, 6.88 ± 4.94 (3.12–24.1) µg/m<sup>3</sup>, and 3.68 ± 1.58 (1.33–6.82) µg/m<sup>3</sup>, respectively, with estimated average SOC of 2.33 µg/m<sup>3</sup>, contributing 34% to total OC. The dominance of char-EC over soot-EC suggests that PM<sub>2.5</sub> is influenced by biomass and coal combustion sources. The average of total PAHs was 1.74 ± 2.68 ng/m<sup>3</sup>. Source identification methods revealed natural gas and biomass burning, and urban traffic combustion as dominant sources of PAHs in Kuala Lumpur. A deterministic health risk assessment of PAHs was conducted for several age groups, including infant, toddler, children, adolescent, and adult. Carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risk of PAH species were well below the acceptable levels recommended by the USEPA. Backward trajectory analysis revealed north-east air mass brought pollutants to the studied areas, suggesting the north-easterly monsoon as a major contributor to increased air pollution in Kuala Lumpur. Further work is needed using long-term monitoring data to understand the origin of PAHs contributing to SOA formation and to apply source-risk apportionment to better elucidate the potential risk factors posed by the various sources in urban areas in Kuala Lumpur. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T12:00:08Z |
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| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T12:00:08Z |
| publishDate | 2021-04-01 |
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| series | Atmosphere |
| spelling | doaj.art-a85303c9557b41079696e05c5dec753a2023-11-21T17:01:36ZengMDPI AGAtmosphere2073-44332021-04-0112554910.3390/atmos12050549Ambient Levels, Emission Sources and Health Effect of PM<sub>2.5</sub>-Bound Carbonaceous Particles and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the City of Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaHamidah Suradi0Md Firoz Khan1Nor Asrina Sairi2Haasyimah Ab Rahim3Sumiani Yusoff4Yusuke Fujii5Kai Qin6Md. Aynul Bari7Murnira Othman8Mohd Talib Latif9Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Selangor, MalaysiaDepartment of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Selangor, MalaysiaDepartment of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Selangor, MalaysiaDepartment of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Selangor, MalaysiaInstitute of Ocean and Earth Environmental (IOES), University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur 50603, Selangor, MalaysiaDepartment of Sustainable System Sciences, Graduate School of Humanities and Sustainable System Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, 1-1 Gakuen-cho, Naka-ku, Sakai, Osaka 599-8531, JapanSchool of Environment and Spatial Informatics, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116, ChinaDepartment of Environmental & Sustainable Engineering, College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, University at Albany, State University of New York, Albany, NY 12222, USAInstitute for Environment and Development, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi 43600, Selangor, MalaysiaDepartment of Earth Sciences and Environment, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi 43600, Selangor, MalaysiaWith increasing interest in understanding the contribution of secondary organic aerosol (SOA) to particulate air pollution in urban areas, an exploratory study was carried out to determine levels of carbonaceous aerosols and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the city of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. PM<sub>2.5</sub> samples were collected using a high-volume sampler for 24 h in several areas in Kuala Lumpur during the north-easterly monsoon from January to March 2019. Samples were analyzed for water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC), organic carbon (OC), and elemental carbon (EC). Secondary organic carbon (SOC) in PM<sub>2.5</sub> was estimated. Particle-bound PAHs were analyzed using gas chromatography-flame ionization detector (GC-FID). Average concentrations of WSOC, OC, and EC were 2.73 ± 2.17 (range of 0.63–9.12) µg/m<sup>3</sup>, 6.88 ± 4.94 (3.12–24.1) µg/m<sup>3</sup>, and 3.68 ± 1.58 (1.33–6.82) µg/m<sup>3</sup>, respectively, with estimated average SOC of 2.33 µg/m<sup>3</sup>, contributing 34% to total OC. The dominance of char-EC over soot-EC suggests that PM<sub>2.5</sub> is influenced by biomass and coal combustion sources. The average of total PAHs was 1.74 ± 2.68 ng/m<sup>3</sup>. Source identification methods revealed natural gas and biomass burning, and urban traffic combustion as dominant sources of PAHs in Kuala Lumpur. A deterministic health risk assessment of PAHs was conducted for several age groups, including infant, toddler, children, adolescent, and adult. Carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risk of PAH species were well below the acceptable levels recommended by the USEPA. Backward trajectory analysis revealed north-east air mass brought pollutants to the studied areas, suggesting the north-easterly monsoon as a major contributor to increased air pollution in Kuala Lumpur. Further work is needed using long-term monitoring data to understand the origin of PAHs contributing to SOA formation and to apply source-risk apportionment to better elucidate the potential risk factors posed by the various sources in urban areas in Kuala Lumpur.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/12/5/549elemental carbonsecondary organic carbonhealth impactpolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonnorth-easterly monsoon |
| spellingShingle | Hamidah Suradi Md Firoz Khan Nor Asrina Sairi Haasyimah Ab Rahim Sumiani Yusoff Yusuke Fujii Kai Qin Md. Aynul Bari Murnira Othman Mohd Talib Latif Ambient Levels, Emission Sources and Health Effect of PM<sub>2.5</sub>-Bound Carbonaceous Particles and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the City of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Atmosphere elemental carbon secondary organic carbon health impact polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon north-easterly monsoon |
| title | Ambient Levels, Emission Sources and Health Effect of PM<sub>2.5</sub>-Bound Carbonaceous Particles and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the City of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| title_full | Ambient Levels, Emission Sources and Health Effect of PM<sub>2.5</sub>-Bound Carbonaceous Particles and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the City of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| title_fullStr | Ambient Levels, Emission Sources and Health Effect of PM<sub>2.5</sub>-Bound Carbonaceous Particles and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the City of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ambient Levels, Emission Sources and Health Effect of PM<sub>2.5</sub>-Bound Carbonaceous Particles and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the City of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| title_short | Ambient Levels, Emission Sources and Health Effect of PM<sub>2.5</sub>-Bound Carbonaceous Particles and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the City of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| title_sort | ambient levels emission sources and health effect of pm sub 2 5 sub bound carbonaceous particles and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the city of kuala lumpur malaysia |
| topic | elemental carbon secondary organic carbon health impact polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon north-easterly monsoon |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/12/5/549 |
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