MOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, China.
MOE Key Laboratory of Pollution Processes and Environmental Criteria, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, China.
J Hazard Mater. 2023 Oct 5;459:132271. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.132271. Epub 2023 Aug 10.
E-waste dismantlers' occupational exposure to plasticizers, particularly non-phthalate (NPAE) plasticizers, is poorly understood. This study monitored 11 phthalates (PAEs) and 16 NPAEs in dust and hand wipe samples from Central China e-waste workplace and ordinary homes. Concentrations of plasticizers in dust from e-waste dismantling workshops (median: 217 μg/g) were significantly lower than that from ordinary homes (462 μg/g; p < 0.01), however, the trend was similar but not significant in hand wipes from these two scenarios (50.2 vs. 72.3 μg/m; p = 0.139). PAEs were still the dominant plasticizers, which is, on average, 5.46 and 3.58-fold higher than NPAEs. In all samples, di-(2ethylhexyl) phthalate (65.4%) and tri-octyl trimellitate (44.9%) were the most common PAE and NPAE plasticizers. Increasing dust concentrations of di-iso-nonyl ester 1,2-cyclohexane dicarboxylic acid, citrates and sebacates were significantly associated with their levels in worker's hand wipe, by contrast, this trend was not found in general population. Dust ingestion was the main channel, followed by hand-to-mouth contact, all participants' daily plasticizer intakes (median: 154 ng/kg bw/day) are within safety limits. Our work highlights knowledge gaps about co-exposure to PAEs and NPAEs by multiple pathways in occupational e-waste workers, which could provide baseline data in the future.
电子废物拆解工人接触增塑剂（尤其是非邻苯二甲酸酯（NPAE）增塑剂）的情况了解甚少。本研究监测了华中地区电子废物工作场所和普通家庭的灰尘和手部擦拭样本中的 11 种邻苯二甲酸酯（PAEs）和 16 种 NPAEs。电子废物拆解车间灰尘中的增塑剂浓度（中位数：217μg/g）明显低于普通家庭（中位数：462μg/g；p<0.01），然而，这一趋势在手擦样本中相似但不显著（50.2 与 72.3μg/m；p=0.139）。PAEs 仍然是主要的增塑剂，平均浓度是 NPAEs 的 5.46 倍和 3.58 倍。在所有样本中，邻苯二甲酸二（2-乙基己基）酯（65.4%）和三辛基三（2-乙基己基）柠檬酸酯（44.9%）是最常见的 PAE 和 NPAE 增塑剂。增塑剂在灰尘中的浓度增加与工人手部擦拭物中的浓度呈显著正相关，相反，在普通人群中未发现这种趋势。粉尘摄入是主要途径，其次是手口接触，所有参与者的每日塑化剂摄入量（中位数：154ng/kg bw/day）均在安全范围内。我们的工作强调了职业性电子废物工人通过多种途径同时接触 PAEs 和 NPAEs 的知识空白，这可为未来提供基线数据。
