Occurrence and Gas-Particle Partitioning of Organic UV-Filters in Urban Air

• Published in: Environmental science & technology 2020-10, Vol.54 (20), p.12881-12889
• Main Authors: Pegoraro, César N, Harner, Tom, Su, Ky, Ahrens, Lutz
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Canada; Climate Research; Environmental effects; Filters; Gas chromatography; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Humans; Klimatforskning; Lotions; Mass spectrometry; Mass spectroscopy; Meteorologi och atmosfärforskning; Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences; Octocrylene; Pesticides; Polymers; Retrospective Studies; Salicylic acid; Seasonal variations; Sun screens; Sunscreening Agents - analysis; Sunscreens; Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Terrestrial environments; Textiles; Ultraviolet radiation; Vapor phases; Volatilization
• ISSN: 0013-936X; 1520-5851; 1520-5851
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c02665

A retrospective analysis of a comprehensive series of high-volume air samples ( = 70) collected during 2010-2011 in Toronto (Canada) was performed. Seven UV compounds were analyzed by gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) with sum of concentrations (gas + particle phase) ranging from 80 to 2030 pg/m . Homosalate (HMS) was the most prevalent organic UV-filter in air (47% of the total concentration), followed by 2-ethylhexyl salicylate (EHS, ∼29%), E- and Z-2-ethylhexyl 4-methoxycinnamate (EHMC, ∼17%). Ambient air (gas + particle phase) concentrations of organic UV-filters showed a strong seasonality, with peak levels during the summer. An analysis of Clausius-Clapeyron slopes indicated that much of the ambient burden of organic UV-filters are explained by volatilization from terrestrial and aquatic surfaces and supplemented with human activities and use of lotions and sunscreens, containing organic UV-filters, in addition to its use in plastics, textiles, paints, and pesticides. The results showed that organic UV-filters exist mainly in the gas phase with some exceptions, for instance, octocrylene (OCR), which was associated with both gas and particle phases, and avobenzone (AVB), which was predominantly in the particle phase. Lastly, this study revealed the need for basic physical chemical property data for organic UV-filters, including information on transformation rates and products, for better evaluating their environmental fate and effects.