Reducing health risk assigned to organic emissions from a chemical weapons incinerator

Organic emissions from a chemical weapons incinerator have been characterized with an improved set of analytical methods to reduce the human health risk assigned to operations of the facility. A gas chromatography/mass selective detection method with substantially reduced detection limits has been u...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental monitoring and assessment 2013-03, Vol.185 (3), p.2257-2267
Main Authors: Laman, David M., Weiler, B. Douglas, Skeen, Rodney S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Air Pollutants - analysis
Air pollution
Air Pollution - statistics & numerical data
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Applied ecology
Aromatic hydrocarbons
Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution
Biological & chemical weapons
Biological and medical sciences
Cancer
Chemical Warfare Agents - analysis
Chemical weapons
Chromatography
Detection limits
Earth and Environmental Science
Ecology
Ecotoxicology
Emissions
Environment
Environmental Exposure - prevention & control
Environmental Exposure - statistics & numerical data
Environmental Management
Environmental monitoring
Fourier transforms
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Gas chromatography
Health risk assessment
Health risks
Humans
Incineration - methods
Incinerators
Microscopy
Monitoring/Environmental Analysis
Organic Chemicals - analysis
PCB
Polychlorinated biphenyls
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
Risk Assessment
Risk Reduction Behavior
Speciation
Spectrometry
Studies
Weapons
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Summary:Organic emissions from a chemical weapons incinerator have been characterized with an improved set of analytical methods to reduce the human health risk assigned to operations of the facility. A gas chromatography/mass selective detection method with substantially reduced detection limits has been used in conjunction with scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry and Fourier transform infrared microscopy to improve the speciation of semi-volatile and non-volatile organics emitted from the incinerator. The reduced detection limits have allowed a significant reduction in the assumed polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) and aminobiphenyl (ABP) emission rates used as inputs to the human health risk assessment for the incinerator. A mean factor of 17 decrease in assigned human health risk is realized for six common local exposure scenarios as a result of the reduced PAH and ABP detection limits.
ISSN:0167-6369
1573-2959
DOI:10.1007/s10661-012-2706-x