AAAR 37th Annual Conference October 14 - October 18, 2019 Oregon Convention Center Portland, Oregon, USA
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Phthalate Hydrolysis and Indoor Air Chemistry
DO YOUNG MAENG, V. Faye McNeill, Columbia University
Abstract Number: 660 Working Group: The Air We Breathe: Indoor Aerosol Sources and Chemistry
Abstract Phthalic acid esters (phthalates) are abundant in indoor environments due to their widespread use in consumer products and building materials. Phthalates have been detected on indoor surfaces, in household dust, and in indoor air. Besides the adverse health effects of direct phthalate exposure, the degradation products of these species in the indoor environment pose additional health concerns. Phthalates are vulnerable to reaction with water molecules (hydrolysis) in the gas or aqueous phase, or on surfaces. The monoesters resulting from phthalate hydrolysis are often more potent endocrine disruptors than the parent molecule. Alcohols, the other main product of phthalate hydrolysis, may have an offensive odor and irritate eyes and respiratory system.
Our goal is to develop a numerical model of multiphase chemistry in the indoor environment that would enable us to quantify and predict the impacts of phthalates and phthalate hydrolysis on indoor air quality under different conditions. To this end, we are adapting the McNeill group model of aqueous atmospheric chemistry, GAMMA, to simulate multiphase processes on indoor surfaces. In order to more fully characterize the mechanisms and kinetics of phthalate hydrolysis under typical conditions, and to obtain required kinetic parameters for modeling, we have performed laboratory studies of phthalate hydrolysis in bulk aqueous solutions under a range of pH conditions. UPLC-QTOF MS/MS is used for detection of reactants and products. Experimental and preliminary modeling results will be presented.