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Liquid crystal monomers (LCMs) in liquid crystal displays (LCDs) may be released into the environment, especially in electronic waste (e-waste) recycling industrial parks with a high pollution risk. However, little has been known about the environmental release and human exposure to LCMs until now. Herein, a total of 45 LCMs were detected in LCDs of commonly used smartphones and computers by high-resolution mass spectrometry with suspect screening analysis. Fluorinated biphenyls and their analogs were the dominant LCMs. Based on available standards of the screening results and previous studies, 55 LCMs were quantified in samples from an e-waste recycling industrial park in Central China. The LCMs were frequently detected in outdoor dust (

Concentrations of eight trace metals (TMs) in road dust (RD) (particles 25 μm) from urban areas of Xinxiang, China, were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The geometric mean concentrations of Zn, Mn, Pb, As, Cu, Cr, Ni and Cd were 489, 350, 114, 101, 60.0, 39.7, 31.6, and 5.1 mg kg

Electronic waste (e-waste) is a well-known source of plastic additives in the environment. However, the e-waste-related occupational exposure to organophosphite antioxidants (OPAs) and the relevant oxidation products—novel organophosphate esters (NOPEs)—via different pathways is still unknown. In this study, six OPAs and three NOPEs were measured in 116 dust and 43 hand-wipe samples from an e-waste dismantling area in Central China. The median concentrations of ΣOPAs and ΣNOPEs were 188 and 13,900 ng·g−1 in workshop dust and 5,250 ng·m−2 and 53,600 ng·m−2 on workers’ hands, respectively. The increasing concentrations of dust in the form of triphenyl phosphate (TPHP) (p

The distribution of brominated flame retardants (BFRs) including ∑ 8 PBDEs, DBDPE, BTBPE, EH-TBB, BEH-TEBP and PBEB in road dust (RD) collected in Xinxiang, China was characterized. Analysis of RD samples indicated that the BFR abundance declined as traffic density decreased, with total mean levels of 292, 184, 163, 104 and 70 ng g −1 dust at sites from traffic intersections, main roads, collector streets, bypasses and parks, respectively. A possible explanation for this phenomenon is that the majority of BFRs may be emitted from the interior of vehicles via their ventilation systems. Of the 13 analyzed substances, BDE-209 and BEH-TEBP were the most abundant components in RD from Xinxiang. Similar amounts of ∑BDEs excluding BDE-209 were found at different types of sampling sites, and thus, atmospheric deposition is also a probable source of BFRs in RD which can be subject to air transportation. The main PBDE sources were traced to commercial products including DE-71, Bromkal 79-8DE, Saytex 201E and Bromkal 82 DE mixtures. Our results confirm that the use of deca-BDE commercial mixture is a major source of PBDE contamination in RD. Risk assessment indicated the concentrations of BFRs in RD in this study do not constitute a non-cancer or cancer risk to humans through ingestion. Annual emission fluxes of the commonly detected BFRs via RD in China were estimated to be up to 4980 kg year −1 .

The health impact of haze is of great concern, but few studies have explored its influence on human inhalation and dermal exposure to trace pollutants. Size-segregated atmospheric particles ( n = 72) and forehead wipe samples ( n = 80) from undergraduates were collected in Xinxiang, China, during a prolonged haze episode and analyzed for 10 organophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs). ∑TCPP and TCEP were the most abundant OPFR substances in all samples. The arithmetic mean particle-bound and forehead OPFR concentrations under a heavy pollution condition (air quality index (AQI), 350-550) were 41.9 ng/m3 (∑8OPFRs) and 7.4 μg/m2 (∑6OPFRs), respectively, apparently greater than the values observed under a light pollution condition (AQI, 60-90) (19.5 ng/m3 and 3.9 μg/m2, respectively). Meteorological conditions played distinctive roles in affecting the OPFR occurrence in atmospheric particles (statistically significant for TCEP and ∑TCPP) and forehead wipes (excluding TPHP), implying that OPFR exposure through inhalation and dermal absorption was synchronously influenced by air quality, and OPFRs on the forehead may be mainly absorbed from the air. Inhalation contributed dominantly to the total OPFR exposure dose for humans when using the relative absorption method to assess dermal exposure, while according to the permeability coefficient method, dermal exposure was much more significant than inhalation. The results of this study indicate that OPFR exposure should attract particular concern in regions with heavy air pollution.