Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in the atmosphere of Shenzhen, China: Spatial distribution, sources and health risk assessment

• Published in: Chemosphere (Oxford) 2015-11, Vol.138, p.511-518
• Main Authors: Liu, Baolin, Zhang, Hong, Yao, Dan, Li, Juying, Xie, Liuwei, Wang, Xinxuan, Wang, Yanping, Liu, Guoqing, Yang, Bo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air Pollutants - analysis; Atmosphere - chemistry; Atmospheres; Categories; Chains; China; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Environmental health risk assessment; Environmental Monitoring; Fluorocarbons - analysis; Freshwater; Health; Humans; Mathematical models; Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs); Perfluoroalkyls; Risk; Risk Assessment; Source appointment; Spatial Analysis; Spatial distribution; Sulfonic acid; Tandem Mass Spectrometry
• ISSN: 0045-6535; 1879-1298
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2015.07.012

•PFOS and PFOA were the two prominent PFCs in the atmosphere.•Distribution of PFCs showed a decreasing tendency from west to east.•PCA models were applied to discover multi-sources for PFCs.•The PFC concentration was correlated with PM2.5 and PM10, respectively.•Non-immediate harm were found by assessment of PFCs exposure to humans. This study investigated the occurrence of perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in the atmosphere of Shenzhen, China. 11 PFCs, including two perfluoroalkyl sulfonic acids (PFSAs, C6 and C8) and perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs, C4–12) were determined by high performance liquid chromatography–negative electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/ESI-MS/MS). Total PFC concentrations (∑ PFCs) in the atmospheric samples ranged from 3.4 to 34pgm−3 with an average of 15pgm−3. Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) were the two most abundant PFCs and on average accounted for 35% and 22% of ∑ PFCs, respectively. ∑ PFCs and total PFCA concentrations (∑ PFCAs) showed a tendency of low-lying East West, while the distribution of total PFSA concentrations (∑ PFSAs) was uniform. Higher concentrations of ∑ PFCs were found in Bao’an District which had very well-developed manufacturing industries. PCA model was employed to quantitatively calculate the contributions of sources. The results showed that PFOA-factor, long chain PFCs-factor and PFOS-factor were the three main source categories for PFCs in the atmosphere. Meanwhile, long-distance transport of pollutants from southeastern coastal areas might be another source of PFCs in Shenzhen atmosphere. PFCs in the atmosphere were more positively correlated with the levels PM10 than PM2.5, which indicated PFCs were more likely to adhere to particles with relatively large sizes. The hazard ratios of noncancer risk through breathing based on PFOS and PFOA concentrations were calculated and were less than unity, suggesting that PFCs concentrations may pose no or immediate threat to the residents in Shenzhen.