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Characteristics of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in PM2.5 emitted from different cooking activities in China

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Abstract

Nineteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in PM2.5 emitted from five different cooking activities were characterized, and their influencing factors were determined. The total quantified particle-bounded PAH concentrations (ΣPAHs) in the airs from the cooking activities were 4.2–36.5-fold higher than those in corresponding backgrounds. The highest ΣPAHs were seen in cafeteria frying (783 ± 499 ng/m3), followed by meat roasting (420 ± 191 ng/m3), fish roasting (210 ± 105 ng/m3), snack-street boiling (202 ± 230 ng/m3), and cafeteria boiling (150 ± 65 ng/m3). The main influencing factors on the PAH emissions were cooking methods, fat contents in raw materials, and oil consumptions. Four- to six-ringed PAHs had the highest contributions to the ΣPAHs (avg. 87.5%). Diagnostic ratios of individual PAH were similar between the two charbroiling and other three conventional Chinese cooking methods, respectively, demonstrating the dominance of cooking methods in the PAH emissions. Remarkably high benzo(b)fluoranthene/benzo(k)fluoranthene (BbF/BkF) ratio (8.31) was seen in the snack-street boiling, attributed to the coal combustion as cooking fuel. Both fluoranthene/(fluoranthene + pyrene) [FLT/(FLT + PYR)] and benzo(a)anthracene/(benzo(a)anthracene + chrysene) [BaA/(BaA + CHR)] ratios were higher for the oil-based cooking than those from the water-based ones. In addition, two ratios of indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene/(indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene + benzo(g,h,i)perylene) [IPY/(IPY + BPE)] and benzo(a)pyrene/(benzo(a)pyrene + benzo(g,h,i)perylene) [BaP/(BaP + BPE)] were higher for two charbroiling than the three conventional Chinese cooking methods. The characterization work in this study is particularly important since cooking is a potential contributor of atmospheric PAHs in urban China. Carcinogenic potencies of PAHs were assessed by comparison with the air quality guideline and health risk estimation. The BaP and BaP equivalent were higher for the oil-based than the water-based cooking activities.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Ting Zhang, Jing-Jing Meng, Sui-Xin Liu, and Rong Zhang for their great helps with the chemical analyses and the anonymous reviewers for their valuable suggestions.

Funding

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation (41205095) of China, foundation of Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment Monitoring and Pollution Control (KHK1407), the Two-Way Support Programs of Sichuan Agricultural University (03570848), and National Undergraduate Training Program for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (201510626043).

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  1. Yun-Chun Li and Jia-Qian Qiu contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Science, Sichuan Agricultural University, Ya’an, 625014, China

    Yun-Chun Li, Jia-Qian Qiu, Man Shu, Xian-Xiang Wang & Xiao-Qing Zhao

  2. Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment Monitoring and Pollution Control (AEMPC), School of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing, 210044, China

    Yun-Chun Li

  3. Key Laboratory of Aerosol Science & Technology, SKLLQG, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi’an, 710075, China

    Steven Sai Hang Ho, Jun-Ji Cao & Ge-Hui Wang

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  1. Yun-Chun Li
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Li, YC., Qiu, JQ., Shu, M. et al. Characteristics of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in PM2.5 emitted from different cooking activities in China. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 4750–4760 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-0603-0

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