Organohalogenated flame retardants and organophosphate esters from home and preschool dust in Sweden: Pollution characteristics, indoor sources and intake assessmentShow others and affiliations
2023 (English)In: Science of the Total Environment, ISSN 0048-9697, E-ISSN 1879-1026, Vol. 896, article id 165198Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
This study analysed settled dust samples in Sweden to assess children's combined exposure to 39 organohalogenated flame retardants (HFRs) and 11 organophosphate esters (OPEs) from homes and preschools. >94 % of the targeted compounds were present in dust, indicating widespread use of HFRs and OPEs in Swedish homes and preschools. Dust ingestion was the primary exposure pathway for most analytes, except BDE-209 and DBDPE, where dermal contact was predominant. Children's estimated intakes of ∑emerging HFRs and ∑legacy HFRs from homes were 1-4 times higher than from preschools, highlighting higher exposure risk for HFRs in homes compared to preschools. In a worst-case scenario, intakes of tris(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (TBOEP) were 6 and 94 times lower than the reference dose for children in Sweden, indicating a potential concern if exposure from other routes like inhalation and diet is as high. The study also found significant positive correlations between dust concentrations of some PBDEs and emerging HFRs and the total number of foam mattresses and beds/m2, the number of foam-containing sofas/m2, and the number of TVs/m2 in the microenvironment, indicating these products as the main source of those compounds. Additionally, younger preschool building ages were found to be linked to higher ΣOPE concentrations in preschool dust, suggesting higher ΣOPE exposure. The comparison with earlier Swedish studies indicates decreasing dust concentrations for some banned and restricted legacy HFRs and OPEs but increasing trends for several emerging HFRs and several unrestricted OPEs. Therefore, the study concludes that emerging HFRs and OPEs are replacing legacy HFRs in products and building materials in homes and preschools, possibly leading to increased exposure of children.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2023. Vol. 896, article id 165198
Keywords [en]
Dermal contact, Dust ingestion, Estimated intake, Organohalogenated flame retardants, Organophosphate esters, Site characteristics
National Category
Occupational Health and Environmental Health
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:oru:diva-106754DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165198ISI: 001037732900001PubMedID: 37391153Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85163844513OAI: oai:DiVA.org:oru-106754DiVA, id: diva2:1778645
Funder
Region Sörmland
Note
Funding agencies:
National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) 22006144
European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC) LRI-B17-SHINE
2023-07-032023-07-032024-10-24Bibliographically approved
In thesis