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. 2023 Sep;38(3):e2023016-0.
doi: 10.5620/eaht.2023016. Epub 2023 Aug 23.

Seasonal and diurnal measurement of ambient benzene at a high traffic inflation site in Delhi: Health risk assessment and its possible role in ozone formation pathways

Poonam Kumari  1   2 , Daya Soni  1   2 , Shankar G Aggarwal  1   2 , Khem Singh  1
Affiliations

Seasonal and diurnal measurement of ambient benzene at a high traffic inflation site in Delhi: Health risk assessment and its possible role in ozone formation pathways

Poonam Kumari et al. Environ Anal Health Toxicol. 2023 Sep.

Abstract

Benzene is the most toxic and hazardous pollutant among volatile organic compounds (VOCs), as it comes under group 1 carcinogens recognized by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). It also plays a significant role in forming secondary pollutants like ozone. The benzene concentration was measured using a charcoal sorbent tube by active sampling at a traffic junction and analysis was done using GC-FID. The maximum average concentration of benzene in ambient air was found to be 33 μg/m3. A diurnal study of benzene measurement shows higher benzene concentrations in the evening compared to the morning. Seasonal variation of benzene is found to be winter > spring > summer > autumn > monsoon and OFP was found to be 21, 19, 14, 13, and 10 respectively. Cancer (ILCR) and non-cancer (HQ) health risk assessment was done to determine the impact of ambient benzene on the residents of urban areas. The yearly average value of ILCR was found to be 2×10-6 ± 1×10-6 which ranges from acceptable value to three times the WHO acceptable value i.e 1×10-6. The correlation of ozone and its precursor, benzene with meteorological parameters is also evaluated. The correlation of benzene and ozone with solar radiation shows the influence of photochemical reactions on the levels of benzene and ozone at the study site, although it is low.

Keywords: Benzene; GC-FID; meteorological parameter; ozone formation potential; risk assessment.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Location map of sampling point, Shadipur, New Delhi
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Monthly average concentration of benzene in ambient air at Shadipur
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Boxplots represent the total benzene concentration variation in different seasons. The square inside the rectangular box shows the average concentration of benzene. The box shows the interquartile range, with the 25th percentile (the first quartile) and the 75th percentile (the third quartile) at the top and bottom of the box, respectively. The upper side of the whisker denotes the maximum value, and its lower side corresponds to the minimum value.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Seasonal OFP contribution of benzene in percentage
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Pollution rose in the graph for benzene (μg/m3) with wind speed and direction
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
The box plot represents the benzene concentration variation twice a day (morning and evening). While the box distributes interquartile range, the top and bottom of the box are defined as the 25th (the first quartile) and the 75th (the third quartile) percentile, respectively. The upper side of the whisker denotes the maximum value, and its lower side corresponds to the minimum value.: (a) Online monitoring data; (b) Manual sampling data
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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