ABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to contribute to the assessment of exposure levels of ultrafine particles in the urban environment of Lisbon, Portugal, due to automobile traffic, by monitoring lung deposited alveolar surface area (resulting from exposure to ultrafine particles) in a major avenue leading to the town center during late spring, as well as in indoor buildings facing it. Data revealed differentiated patterns for week days and weekends, consistent with PM(2.5) and PM10 patterns currently monitored by air quality stations in Lisbon. The observed ultrafine particulate levels may be directly correlated with fluxes in automobile traffic. During a typical week, amounts of ultrafine particles per alveolar deposited surface area varied between 35 and 89.2 µm²/cm³, which are comparable with levels reported for other towns in Germany and the United States. The measured values allowed for determination of the number of ultrafine particles per cubic centimeter, which are comparable to levels reported for Madrid and Brisbane. In what concerns outdoor/indoor levels, we observed higher levels (32 to 63%) outdoors, which is somewhat lower than levels observed in houses in Ontario.
Subject(s)
Environmental Exposure , Inhalation Exposure , Particulate Matter/administration & dosage , Pulmonary Alveoli/drug effects , Respiratory Mucosa/drug effects , Urban Health , Vehicle Emissions/analysis , Air Pollution, Indoor/adverse effects , Environmental Exposure/adverse effects , Environmental Monitoring , Humans , Inhalation Exposure/adverse effects , Microscopy, Electron, Transmission , Models, Biological , Particle Size , Particulate Matter/chemistry , Particulate Matter/toxicity , Portugal , Reproducibility of Results , Seasons , Time Factors , Vehicle Emissions/toxicityABSTRACT
The aim of this study is to assess the levels of airborne ultrafine particles emitted in welding processes (tungsten inert gas [TIG], metal active gas [MAG] of carbon steel, and friction stir welding [FSW] of aluminum) in terms of deposited area in pulmonary alveolar tract using a nanoparticle surface area monitor (NSAM) analyzer. The obtained results showed the dependence of process parameters on emitted ultrafine particles and demonstrated the presence of ultrafine particles compared to background levels. Data indicated that the process that resulted in the lowest levels of alveolar deposited surface area (ADSA) was FSW, followed by TIG and MAG. However, all tested processes resulted in significant concentrations of ultrafine particles being deposited in humans lungs of exposed workers.
Subject(s)
Air Pollutants, Occupational/analysis , Metal Nanoparticles/analysis , Occupational Exposure , Pulmonary Alveoli/chemistry , Respiratory Mucosa/chemistry , Welding , Adult , Bronchi/chemistry , Environmental Monitoring/instrumentation , Humans , Male , Models, Biological , Portugal , Trachea/chemistry , Welding/methods , WorkplaceABSTRACT
The aim of this study is to contribute to the assessment of exposure levels of ultrafine particles (UFP) in the urban environment of Lisbon, Portugal, due to automobile traffic, by monitoring lung-deposited alveolar surface area (resulting from exposure to UFP) in a major avenue leading to the town centre during late Spring, as well as in indoor buildings facing it. This study revealed differentiated patterns for week days and weekends, consistent with PM(2.5) and PM(10) patterns currently monitored by air quality stations in Lisbon. The observed ultrafine particulate levels could be directly related with the fluxes of automobile traffic. During a typical week, UFP alveolar deposited surface area varied between 35.0 and 89.2 µm(2)/cm(3), which is comparable with levels reported for other towns such in Germany and United States. The measured values allowed the determination of the number of UFP per cm(3), which are comparable to levels reported for Madrid and Brisbane. In what concerns outdoor/indoor levels, we observed higher levels (32-63%) outdoor, which is somewhat lower than levels observed in houses in Ontario.
Subject(s)
Air Pollutants/analysis , Particulate Matter/analysis , Air Pollution, Indoor/analysis , Cities , Environmental Monitoring , Microscopy, Electron, Transmission , Particle Size , Portugal , Vehicle EmissionsABSTRACT
This work describes the outline of a methodology, which has been applied with success in several situations, for construction of an healthy building in terms of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ). This methodology aims to decrease or even eliminate, where possible, the emissions resulting from building materials and includes the following steps: the evaluation of available information and specifications on building materials and related products; discussions with manufacturers, analysis of samples, in situ inspections and final IAQ investigations.
