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result(s) for
"Air sampling"
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The identification of synthetic drug laboratories based on the detection of precursors
The Netherlands is a small country but large in terms of production and trade in synthetic drugs, especially amphetamines and MDMA. In fact, Dutch criminals are global leaders, with networks and business practices all over the world. It's a billion dollar business, that forms a shadow economy with great appeal. Production of these drugs takes place at remote locations, in barns connected to farmhouses but also in residential areas where production locations are hidden in cellars and attics. In this study we developed a method that may be helpful to detect such illegal synthetic drug laboratories in suspected areas. An SPME sampler is used to passively collect air samples which are then analyzed for benzyl methyl ketone (BMK) and piperonyl methyl ketone (PMK), the precursors of respectively amphetamines and MDMA. The detection limit was 0.01 ng absolute for both compounds which means that BMK and PMK can be detected at concentrations comparable to other airborne VOCs with a sampling time of less than 10 min. Environmental conditions have only a limited influence on the uptake of BMK and PMK. In measurements in and around a simulated synthetic drug laboratory BMK and PMK could easily be detected inside the facility and even outside at distances up to 5 m. In a training laboratory facility of the police, BMK as well as PMK could be detected even while these compounds were no longer present in this facility. The identification of BMK and PMK was selective which was confirmed by measurements at 40 unsuspected locations where BMK and PMK were not detected in the presence of other compounds. The method can help to confirm the identification of illegal synthetic drug laboratories or a storage facility in suspected locations. While analysis in this study was done in the laboratory, analysis in practice may be possible using a mobile GC/MS system.
•A method for the detection of airborne synthetic drug precursors BMK and PMK.•Two passive samplers were tested for the collection of the drug precursors.•The drug precursors could be detected at low concentrations in 10 min.•BMK and PMK could be detected outside lab facilities at distances up to 5 m.•The identification was selective for BMK and PMK.
Journal Article
Development of an analytical method for the determination of more than 300 pesticides and metabolites in the particulate and gaseous phase of ambient air
Pesticides can enter the atmosphere during spraying or after application, resulting in environmental or human exposure. The study describes the optimisation and validation of analytical methods for the determination of more than 300 pesticides in the particulate and gaseous phases of the air. Pesticides were sampled with high-volume air samplers on glass-fibre filters (GFFs) and glass columns filled with polyurethane foam (PUF) and XAD-2 resin. Comparing different extraction methods, a QuEChERS extraction with acetonitrile was selected for the GFFs. For the PUF/XAD-2 columns, a cold-column extraction with dichloromethane was used. Instrumental determination was performed using liquid chromatography/electrospray ionisation-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC/ESI-QTOF) and gas chromatography/electron impact ionisation-tandem mass spectrometry (GC/EI-MS/MS). Recovery experiments showed recovery rates between 70 and 120% for 263 compounds on the GFFs and 75 compounds on the PUF/XAD-2 columns. Semi-quantitative determination was performed for 39 compounds on the GFFs and 110 compounds on the PUF/XAD-2 columns. Finally, 27 compounds on the GFFs and 138 compounds on the PUF/XAD-2 columns could be determined only qualitatively. For the determination of the PUF/XAD-2 samples, signal suppression (LC) or signal enhancement (GC) due to matrix effects were determined. Method quantification limits of the optimised methods ranged from 30 to 240 pg/m3 for the target compounds on the GFFs, and from 8 to 60 pg/m3 on the PUF/XAD-2 columns. The applicability of the method was demonstrated by means of environmental air samples from an agricultural area in the Netherlands.
Journal Article
Temporal variations in airborne PCDD/F and dl-PCB concentrations surrounding the dioxin-remediated areas in Da Nang, Vietnam, and health risk assessments
The air pollution levels from polychlorodibenzo-p-dioxins/polychlorodibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and dioxin-like polychlorobiphenyls (dl-PCBs) in three residential areas located north, west, and south of the Da Nang airport were determined by using passive air samplers containing polyurethane foam (PUF) discs with 3-month sampling intervals from 2017 to 2020. The total toxic equivalents (∑TEQs) of the PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs, using WHO
2005
-TEFs, were highest north of the airport (134 to 10610 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day, with an average of 1108 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day). The ∑TEQs were lower west of the airport, between 159 and 381 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day and averaged 230 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day. The lowest ∑TEQs occurred south of the airport, with ranges of 76 and 331 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day and an average of 152 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day. Construction activities, including excavation and transportation of dioxin-contaminated soil north of the airport, have increased airborne PCDD/F and dl-PCB contamination and health risks. The average daily doses of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs through inhalation (ADD
A
) for residents located north of the airport were the highest (10.9 to 3434 fg WHO-TEQ/kg BW/day and average: 597 fg WHO-TEQ/kg BW/day). Residents located west of the airport faced lower health risks (13–123 fg WHO-TEQ/kg BW/day and average: 39 fg WHO-TEQ/kg BW/day). Residents south of the airport were exposed to a minimum of 6.2–107 fg WHO-TEQ/kg BW/day, with an average of 28 fg WHO-TEQ/kg BW/day. The maximum and average ADD
A
values for residents north of the airport exceeded 10% of the tolerable daily intake (TDI) recommended by the WHO (100–400 fg WHO-TEQ/kg BW/day). In comparison, all the ADD
A
values for residents located west and south of the airport were less than and within 10% of the TDI.
Journal Article
Concentrations of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs in ambient air in Hanoi, Vietnam, between 2017 and 2021, and health risk assessments
The concentrations and seasonal and temporal variations in polychlorodibenzo-
p
-dioxins/polychlorodibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and dioxin-like polychlorobiphenyls (dl-PCBs) in ambient air from November 2017 to September 2021 were investigated via passive air samplers containing polyurethane foam (PUF) discs in three residential areas: the Cau Giay (CG) urban, Quang Minh (QM) industrial-suburban, and Ba Vi (BV) rural areas, Hanoi, Vietnam. The average total toxic equivalents (TEQs) of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs (∑TEQs), using WHO
2005
-TEFs, were highest in the QM area (506 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day) and ranged from 317 to 752 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day. Compared to that in the QM area, the average ∑TEQs were lower in the CG area, ranging between 372 and 615 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day with an average value of 482 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day. The average ∑TEQs were lowest in the BV area, ranging from 121 to 414 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day with an average of 231 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day. PCDD/F and dl-PCB air pollution increased during spring and winter. The highest seasonal average ∑TEQs in the CG area was 534 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day in winter. The highest average ∑TEQs in the QM and BV areas were 653 and 280 fg WHO-TEQ/PUF day in spring, respectively. The average daily dose (ADD) values of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs through inhalation for adults in the three areas were minimal (9.9–96.2 fg WHO-TEQ/kg body weight (BW)/day) and below the 10% threshold of the tolerable daily intake (TDI) value recommended by the WHO (100–400 fg WHO-TEQ/kg BW/day). For children, the ADD values (15.1–244 fg WHO-TEQ/kg BW/day) were less than and within 10% of the recommended TDI value.
Journal Article
The impact of respirable dust exposure on lung function parameters of motorcycle taxi drivers in Bangkok and adjacent provinces, Thailand
The motorcycle taxi drivers of Bangkok and adjacent provinces in Thailand may have been heavily exposed to ambient air pollution and the impact of this on their lungs has been neither documented nor studied. In this study, we recruited a total of 343 motorcycle taxi drivers in Bangkok and adjacent provinces in Thailand and their lung function parameters were analyzed using spirometry in May and June 2022. Of these, 153 participants were selected and their exposure to respirable dust during working was measured by personal air sampling. Respirable dust concentrations collected with personal air sampling suggested that motorcycle taxi drivers working at workstations where they were exposed to respirable dust at high concentrations tended to have a low percent predicted FEV1. Twelve% and 7.3% of motorcycle taxi drivers recruited in this study had the symptoms of chronic bronchitis and acute bronchitis, respectively. These results suggested that some motorcycle taxi drivers around Bangkok and adjacent provinces had a high risk of occupational exposure to ambient air pollution. The government needs to establish a medical check-up system for motorcycle taxi drivers to monitor their health status.
Journal Article
A method for determining workers’ exposure concentration to airborne nitrilotriacetic acid
Objectives: This study aimed to establish a method to determine workers’ exposure concentrations to airborne nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA).Methods: The sampler used an air sampling cassette containing a glass-fiber filter (GFF). After sampling, NTA extracted from the GFF using ultrapure water was derivatized using a boron trifluoride-methanol complex methanol solution and analyzed using a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer. The developed method was validated for the following parameters: retention efficiency, storage stability, method quantitation limit, and reproducibility.Results: The retention efficiency for NTA on the GFF was 94%-101%, with the relative SD indicating the overall reproducibility (range 0.9%-2.4%). NTA on the GFF was stable at 4°C for at least 7 days. The method quantitation limit was 4.8 μg per sample.Conclusions: The developed method will be useful for risk assessments because it can determine workers’ exposure concentrations to NTA ranging from 0.02 to 4 mg/m3 in a 240 L sampling volume; the quantitation limit is 4.8 μg per sample.
Journal Article
Air sampling and analysis method to determine worker exposure levels to N -isopropyl- N ′-phenyl- p -phenylenediamine
Objectives: This study aimed to develop a method for determining workers’ exposure concentrations to airborne N-isopropyl-N′-phenyl-p-phenylenediamine (IPPD). Methods: A hydrophobic polytetrafluoroethylene (HPB PTFE) membrane filter was used as the sampling medium. IPPD was extracted from the HPB PTFE filter with acetonitrile, and its concentration in the extracted solution was determined using a high-performance liquid chromatograph equipped with a photodiode array detector. The validating method was performed using the following parameters: extraction and retention efficiency, storage stability, method quantitation limit, and reproducibility. Results: The IPPD extraction efficiency from the spiked HPB PTFE filters was 96%-100%. The IPPD retention efficiencies on the HPB PTFE filters were 72%-99%, with relative standard deviations indicating the overall reproducibility of 0.9%-3.1%. IPPD on the HPB PTFE filter remained stable for at least 7 days at 4°C. The method quantitation limit was 12.5 μg/sample. Conclusions: We successfully developed a method to measure workers’ exposure to airborne IPPD within the concentration range of 0.05-4 mg/m3, which will assist risk assessments.
Journal Article
SARS-CoV-2 surveillance in indoor and outdoor size-segregated aerosol samples
We aimed to determine the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in indoor and outdoor size-segregated aerosol samples (PM
10-2.5
, PM
2.5
). Five outdoor daily samples were collected between November and December 2020 in an urban/industrial area with relatively high PM
10
levels (Maliaño, Santander, Spain) by using a PM impactor (air flowrate of 30 L/min). In a non-hospital indoor sampling surveillance context, 8 samples in classrooms and 6 samples in the central library-Paraninfo of the University of Cantabria (UC) were collected between April and June 2021 by using personal PM samplers (air flowrate of 3 L/min). Lastly, 8 samples in the pediatric nasopharyngeal testing room at Liencres Hospital, 6 samples from different single occupancy rooms of positive patients, and 2 samples in clinical areas of the COVID plant of the University Hospital Marqués de Valdecilla (HUMV) were collected between January and May 2021. N1, N2 genes were used to test the presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA by RT-qPCR. SARS-CoV-2 positive detection was only obtained from one fine fraction (PM
2.5
) sample, corresponding to one occupancy room, where a patient with positive PCR and cough was present. Negative results found in other sampling areas such as the pediatric nasopharyngeal testing rooms should be interpreted in terms of air sampling volume limitation and good ventilation.
Journal Article