Characteristics of trace elements bound to ambient nanoparticles (PM0.1) and a health risk assessment in southern Thailand

Worradorn Phairuang; Muanfun Inerb; Mitsuhiko Hata; Masami Furuuchi

doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127986

Characteristics of trace elements bound to ambient nanoparticles (PM_0.1) and a health risk assessment in southern Thailand

J Hazard Mater. 2022 Mar 5:425:127986. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127986. Epub 2021 Dec 8.

Authors

Worradorn Phairuang¹, Muanfun Inerb², Mitsuhiko Hata³, Masami Furuuchi⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Geography, Faculty of Social Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Muang, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand; Faculty of Geoscience and Civil Engineering, Institute of Science and Engineering, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa 920-1192, Japan. Electronic address: worradorn@gmail.com.
² Faculty of Environmental Management, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Songkhla 90112, Thailand.
³ Faculty of Geoscience and Civil Engineering, Institute of Science and Engineering, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa 920-1192, Japan.
⁴ Faculty of Geoscience and Civil Engineering, Institute of Science and Engineering, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa 920-1192, Japan; Faculty of Environmental Management, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Songkhla 90112, Thailand.

PMID: 34902726
DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127986

Abstract

Ambient nanoparticles, or PM_0.1 and thirteen trace elements (Al, Ba, K, Fe, Cr, Cu, Ni, Na, Mn, Mg, Ti, Pb, and Zn) were studied in Hat Yai, Thailand during the year 2018. The annual average PM_0.1 mass concentration was 8.45 ± 1.93 µg/m³. The PM_0.1 levels in Hat Yai were similar to those in large cities in South East Asia, such as Hanoi and North Sumatra, but lower than other cities in Thailand. The sum of thirteen trace elements was 207.83 ± 17.06 ng/m³ and was dominated by Na, Zn, K, Mg, and Al. The highest concentration of elements occurred in the pre-monsoon season followed by the dry and monsoon seasons. A principal component analysis (PCA) indicated that PM_0.1 comes from motor vehicles, crustal dust, industrial and biomass burning. The PM_0.1 was dominated in the pre-monsoon season, suggesting that biomass burning from the southwest direction could cause an increase in the levels of Cr, Ti, and Ni. The total cancer risk from all the carcinogenic elements was 1.98 × 10^-6 in adults, indicating that the carcinogenic risk is in a tolerable risk assessment range. The increasing levels of PM_0.1 during transboundary haze pollution and local source emissions are a concern.

Keywords: Biomass burning; Health risk; PM(0.1); Principal Component Analysis; Trace elements.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Air Pollutants* / analysis
Cities
Environmental Monitoring
Nanoparticles*
Particulate Matter / analysis
Risk Assessment
Seasons
Thailand
Trace Elements* / analysis

Substances

Air Pollutants
Particulate Matter
Trace Elements