AAAR 36th Annual Conference October 16 - October 20, 2017 Raleigh Convention Center Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
Abstract View
Method Development for Determining Particle/Air Partition Coefficient of SVOCs
YAOXING WU, Shengyang Chen, Clara Eichler, Eric Vejerano, Linsey Marr, John Little, Virginia Tech
Abstract Number: 462 Working Group: Indoor Aerosols
Abstract Semivolatile organic compounds (SVOCs) are ubiquitous in the indoor environment, and exposure to them is linked to a variety of adverse health effects. Because SVOCs partition between the gaseous and particulate phase, total airborne SVOC concentrations and resulting human exposure can be higher than expected. When it comes to understanding interactions between airborne particles and SVOCs, there are numerous models based on different theories but few experimentally measuring SVOC partitioning between the gaseous phase and particulate phase. In this study, a specially-designed tube chamber operating in the laminar flow regime was developed to investigate the particle-mediated mass transfer of SVOCs; this approach is advantageous in terms of both predictability and simplicity. Di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) was selected as the target SVOC due to its widespread use in consumer products and building materials. The particle/air partition coefficient (Kp) of DEHP was determined to be 0.011 ± 0.004 m3/µg. Computational fluid dynamics modeling shows that the presence of particles increases the radial gas-phase concentration gradient, resulting in enhanced mass transfer from the source of emissions to the air. This novel experimental approach offers a rapid method for measuring Kp and a sound basis for characterizing gas-particle interactions of SVOCs.