Department of Chemical and Biological Work Environment, National Institute of Occupational Health, Oslo, Norway.
North-West Public Health Research Centre, St. Petersburg, Russia.
Ann Work Expo Health. 2019 Mar 29;63(3):349-358. doi: 10.1093/annweh/wxy112.
Elemental carbon (EC) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in air as markers for diesel exhaust (DE) emission exposure were measured in selected work environments in Norway where diesel-powered engines are in use. Two hundred and ninety personal full-shift air samples were collected in primary aluminium production, underground and open-pit mining, road tunnel finishing, transport of ore, and among airport baggage handlers. EC was determined in the samples by a thermo-optical method, while NO2 was determined by ion chromatography. Highest EC air concentrations (geometric mean, GM) were found in aluminium smelters (GM = 45.5 μg m-3) followed by road tunnel finishing (GM = 37.8 μg m-3) and underground mining activities (GM = 18.9 μg m-3). Low EC air concentrations were measured for baggage handling at an international airport (GM = 2.7 μg m-3) and in an open-pit mine (GM = 1.2 μg m-3). Air concentrations of NO2 were similar in road tunnel finishing (GM = 128 μg m-3) and underground mining (GM = 108 μg m-3). Lower NO2 values were observed in open-pit mining (GM = 50 μg m-3), at the airport (GM = 37 μg m-3), and in the aluminium smelters (GM = 27 μg m-3). Highly significant (P < 0.001) positive correlations between NO2 and EC air concentrations in underground mining (r = 0.54) and road tunnel finishing (r = 0.71) indicate a common source of these pollutants. NO2 and EC were also correlated (P < 0.01) positively at the airport. However, due to the complex air chemistry and a potential contribution of various sources, the correlation between EC and NO2 cannot be regarded as unambiguous hint for a common source. The association between EC and NO2 was not of statistical significance in open-pit mining. In the aluminium smelters, EC and NO2 were negatively correlated, although not reaching statistical significance. The substantial differences in NO2/EC ratios across the investigated industries, ranging from around 0.2 in the primary aluminium production to around 25 during spring at the airport, clearly show that exposure to DE cannot be estimated based on NO2 concentrations, at least for outdoor environments. Results in the primary aluminium production suggest that the measured EC concentrations are related to DE emissions, although the NO2 concentrations were low. Further studies are required to assess the magnitude of exposure in primary aluminium production.
元素碳（EC）和二氧化氮（NO2）作为柴油机排放（DE）暴露的标志物，在挪威使用柴油机的选定工作环境中进行了测量。在 290 个个人全班次空气样本中，采集了在原铝生产、地下和露天采矿、道路隧道修整、矿石运输以及机场行李搬运工等领域中的空气样本。通过热光学法测定 EC，通过离子色谱法测定 NO2。在铝冶炼厂（GM = 45.5μg/m3）中发现 EC 空气浓度最高（几何平均值，GM），其次是道路隧道修整（GM = 37.8μg/m3）和地下采矿活动（GM = 18.9μg/m3）。国际机场行李处理（GM = 2.7μg/m3）和露天矿（GM = 1.2μg/m3）中 EC 空气浓度较低。在道路隧道修整（GM = 128μg/m3）和地下采矿（GM = 108μg/m3）中，NO2 空气浓度相似。在露天矿（GM = 50μg/m3）、机场（GM = 37μg/m3）和铝冶炼厂（GM = 27μg/m3）中，NO2 值较低。在地下采矿（r = 0.54）和道路隧道修整（r = 0.71）中，NO2 和 EC 空气浓度之间存在高度显著（P < 0.001）的正相关，表明这些污染物具有共同的来源。在机场，NO2 和 EC 也呈正相关（P < 0.01）。然而，由于空气化学的复杂性以及各种来源的潜在贡献，EC 和 NO2 之间的相关性不能被视为共同来源的明确迹象。在露天采矿中，EC 和 NO2 之间的相关性没有统计学意义。在铝冶炼厂中，尽管没有达到统计学意义，但 EC 和 NO2 呈负相关。在所研究的行业中，NO2/EC 比值存在显著差异，从原铝生产中的约 0.2 到春季机场的约 25，这清楚地表明，不能基于 NO2 浓度来估计 DE 的暴露情况，至少对于户外环境而言。原铝生产中的结果表明，测量的 EC 浓度与 DE 排放有关，尽管 NO2 浓度较低。需要进一步研究来评估原铝生产中的暴露程度。
