10th International Aerosol Conference September 2 - September 7, 2018 America's Center Convention Complex St. Louis, Missouri, USA
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Exposure Profiles and Related Health Risks of Benzene Toluene and Xylene at Two Different Microenvironments of a Terai Region in North India
AMIT MASIH, St. Andrew's College, Gorakhpur, India
Abstract Number: 847 Working Group: Air Quality in Megacities: from Sources to Control
Abstract Benzene, toluene and xylene (BTX) are elements of an important group of aromatic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are usually emitted from various sources. BTX play a vital role in the tropospheric chemistry as well as pose health hazard to human being. Thus, an investigation of ambient benzene, toluene and xylene (BTX) was conducted at an urban and rural site in Gorakhpur for a span of one year in order to ascertain the contamination levels. Sampling and analysis of BTX were performed using a methodology based on NIOSH method 1501. BTX were sampled by drawing air through activated coconut shell charcoal tubes, using a low-flow SKC Model 220 sampling pump at the flow rate of 250 ml/min for 20-24 hrs. The air suction rate was verified every week using calibrated rotameters with an accuracy of ±1%. The samples were extracted with carbon disulphide by occasional agitation and the aromatic fraction was subjected to GC-FID. Total mean concentration of BTX was 30.95 µg/m3 in all the samples and the total range was from 3.4 µg/m3 to 45.4 µg/m3 with the median of 24.8 µg/m3. The maximum levels of total BTX was found to be 39.3 µg/m3 in winters, followed by 28.4 µg/m3 in summer and 25.1 µg/m3 in monsoon season. The total BTX concentration was highest at rural site (11.8 µg/m3) followed by urban site (8.8 µg/m3). At both the sites, maximum B/T ratio was found in winter season whereas the X/B ratio was found to be lowest. Toluene against benzene plot shows R2 value of 0.91 and 0.93 at urban and rural sites respectively. At both the sites, the estimated integrated lifetime cancer risk (ILTCR) for benzene exceeded the threshold value of 1E-06 whereas the individual hazard quotients (HQ) for BTX did not exceed unity at any of the sites.