Insight into personal exposure characteristics and health effects of PM_2.5 and PM_0.25-bound PAHs and their derivatives with different heating ways in the Fenwei Plain, China

Personal exposure (PE) to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their derivatives in particulate matter with two aerodynamic sizes of 2.5 and 0.25 μm (PM_2.5 and PM_0.25) from rural housewives was studied in the Fenwei Plain, China. A total of 15 households were divided into five different groups based on the type of solid fuel and heating device used, including biomass briquette-furnace (BBF), biomass-elevated Kang (BEK), outdoor lump coal-boiler (OLC), indoor briquette coal-stove (IBC), and electricity (ELE). The PE concentrations of the PAHs and biomarkers in urine collected from the participants were determined. The results showed that the PE concentrations of total quantified PAHs in the biomass group (i.e., BBF and BEK) were 2.2 and 2.0 times higher than those in the coal groups (i.e., OLC and IBC) in PM_2.5 and PM_0.25, respectively. The housewives who used biomass as fuel suffered from higher potential health impacts than the coal fuel users. The incremental lifetime cancer risk for the PAHs in PM_2.5 in the BBF and BEK groups exceeded the international safety threshold. Furthermore, the PE concentrations of oxygenated PAH (o-PAHs) in PM_2.5 and PM_0.25 in the biomass groups and the nitrated PAHs (n-PAHs) in PM_0.25 in the coal groups showed strong correlations with the biomarkers. The results of this study proved the associations between exposure to the different classes of PAHs and health hazards. The findings could also serve as a guideline in establishing efficient measures for using solid fuels for cooking and household warming in northern China.