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Occurrence and human exposure assessment of organophosphate flame retardants in indoor dust from various microenvironments of the Rhine/Main region, Germany
Author(s) -
Zhou L.,
Hiltscher M.,
Püttmann W.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
indoor air
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.387
H-Index - 99
eISSN - 1600-0668
pISSN - 0905-6947
DOI - 10.1111/ina.12397
Subject(s) - organophosphate , environmental chemistry , triphenyl phosphate , phosphate , environmental science , chemistry , human health , fire retardant , environmental health , ecology , pesticide , biology , medicine , organic chemistry
We analyzed organophosphate flame retardants ( OPFR s) in 74 indoor dust samples collected from seven microenvironments (building material markets, private cars, daycare centers, private homes, floor/carpet stores, offices, and schools) in the Rhine/Main region of Germany. Ten of 11 target OPFR s were ubiquitously detected, some with more than 97% detection frequency, including tris(1,3‐dichloroisopropyl)phosphate ( TCIPP ), tris(2‐butoxyethyl)phosphate ( TBOEP ), triphenyl phosphate ( TPHP ), and tris(isobutyl) phosphate ( TIBP ). Total concentrations (∑ OPFR s) ranged from 5.9 to 4800 μg/g, with TBOEP and TCIPP being the most abundant congeners. The ∑ OPFR s in schools, private cars, offices, and daycare centers were significantly ( P <.05) higher than in private homes. The ∑ OPFR s for building material markets (19 μg/g) and floor/carpet stores (20 μg/g) showed no significant difference to the other microenvironments, likely because of forced ventilation. The profiles of OPFR s in dust samples from offices and private homes were highly similar, while profiles from the other five microenvironments were substantially different. Comparison of our results with previous studies indicates a significant global variation in OPFR concentrations and their profiles, reflecting distinct fire safety regulations in different countries and/or different sampling strategies. Dust ingestion constitutes the major exposure pathway to OPFR s for toddlers, while air inhalation is the major pathway for adults.