School of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
College of New Energy and Environment, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, People's Republic of China.
Environ Geochem Health. 2024 Mar 14;46(4):136. doi: 10.1007/s10653-024-01905-8.
Many organic contaminated sites require on-site remediation; excavation remediation processes can release many volatile organic compounds (VOCs) which are key atmospheric pollutants. It is therefore important to rapidly identify VOCs during excavation and map their risk areas for human health protection. In this study, we developed a rapid analysis and assessment method, aiming to and reveal the real-time distribution of VOCs, evaluate their human health risks by quantitative models, and design appropriate control measures. Through on-site diagonal distribution sampling and analysis, VOCs concentration showed a decreasing trend within 5 m from the excavation point and then increased after 5 m with the increase in distance from the excavation point (p < 0.05). The concentrations of VOCs near the dominant wind direction were higher than the concentrations of surrounding pollutants. In contrast with conventional solid-phase adsorption (SPA) and thermal desorption gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TD-GC/MS) methods for determining the composition and concentration of VOCs, the rapid measurement of VOCs by photo-ionization detector (PID) fitted well with the chemical analysis and modeling assessment of cancer/non-cancer risk. The targeting area was assessed as mild-risk (PID < 10 ppm), moderate-risk (PID from 10 to 40 ppm), and heavy-risk (PID > 40 ppm) areas. Similarly, the human health risks also decreased gradually with the distance from the excavation point, with the main risk area located in the dominant wind direction. The results of rapid PID assessment were comparable to conventional risk evaluation, demonstrating its feasibility in rapidly identifying VOCs releases and assessing the human health risks. This study also suggested appropriate control measures that are important guidance for personal protection during the remediation excavation process.
许多有机污染场地需要就地修复；挖掘修复过程会释放许多挥发性有机化合物（VOCs），这些化合物是主要的大气污染物。因此，在挖掘过程中快速识别 VOCs 并绘制其对人类健康的风险区域图非常重要。在这项研究中，我们开发了一种快速分析和评估方法，旨在揭示 VOCs 的实时分布，通过定量模型评估其对人类健康的风险，并设计适当的控制措施。通过现场对角线分布采样和分析，发现 VOCs 浓度在距挖掘点 5 m 范围内呈下降趋势，然后随着与挖掘点距离的增加而增加（p < 0.05）。主导风向附近的 VOCs 浓度高于周围污染物的浓度。与传统的固相吸附（SPA）和热解吸气相色谱-质谱联用（TD-GC/MS）方法相比，用于测定 VOCs 组成和浓度的光离子化检测器（PID）快速测量方法与癌症/非癌症风险的化学分析和建模评估拟合良好。目标区域被评估为轻度风险（PID < 10 ppm）、中度风险（PID 从 10 到 40 ppm）和重度风险（PID > 40 ppm）区域。同样，随着与挖掘点距离的增加，人类健康风险也逐渐降低，主要风险区域位于主导风向。快速 PID 评估的结果与传统风险评估相当，证明了其在快速识别 VOCs 释放和评估人类健康风险方面的可行性。本研究还提出了适当的控制措施，为修复挖掘过程中的个人保护提供了重要指导。
