Chemical and Toxicant Analysis of House Dust in Urban Versus Suburban Areas
EMILY HALPERN, Killian MacFeeley, Lauren Heirty, Maria Misovich, Christopher P. West, Satya Patra, Brian Magnuson, Brandon E. Boor, Paige Thompson, Laura Claxton, Orit Herzberg, Meghan Kalvey, Karen Adolph, Alexander Laskin,
Purdue University Abstract Number: 444
Working Group: Indoor Aerosols
AbstractHouse dust is a complex environmental sink for indoor aerosols and gases that may have health impacts in infants due to inhalation and ingestion. Indoor aerosol and deposited house dust can contain environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFR), heavy metals, and persistent organic pollutants which are of concern for infant development. The composition of house dust also differs depending on home location, building characteristics, and socioeconomic factors. Here, we investigated the composition of sieved house dust samples collected from households with infants (6-24 months) in West Lafayette, IN (and surrounding areas) and in New York, NY. A host of complementary multi-modal analytical techniques are applied to determine the presence and concentration of species of concern. We employ electronic paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy to characterize radical type and quantify EPFR concentrations. To characterize heavy metal composition, we employ a combination of x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) measurements. The quantitation of heavy metals using ICP-MS is performed for toxic and commonly found metals (Fe, Pb, As, Cu, Al, Cr, Ni). The molecular characterization of persistent organic pollutants is achieved using solid phase extraction followed by analysis with ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography equipped with a photodiode array detector and high-resolution mass spectrometry interfaced with both electrospray ionization and dopant-assisted atmospheric pressure photoionization. Through these methods, we observe the compositional differences of house dust in different regions, and the concentrations of these species can inform understanding of their impact on infant health.