Environ Monit Assess. 2009 Nov 26.
Indoor exposure to respirable particulate matter and particulate-phase PAHs in rural homes in North India.
Ansari FA, Khan AH, Patel DK, Siddiqui H, Sharma S, Ashquin M, Ahmad I.
Fiber Toxicology Division, Indian Institute of Toxicology Research (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research), Mahatma Gandhi Marg, Post Box No. 80, Lucknow, 226 001, India.
In order to evaluate the exposure of the northern India rural population to polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) inhalation, indoor pollution was assessed by collecting and analyzing the respirable particulate matter PM (2.5) and PM(10) in several homes of the village Bhithauli near Lucknow, UP. The home selection was determined by a survey. Given the nature of biomass used for cooking, homes were divided into two groups, one using all kinds of biomass and the second type using plant materials only. Indoor mean concentrations of PM(2.5) and associated PAHs during cooking ranged from 1.19 +/- 0.29 to 2.38 +/- 0.35 and 6.21 +/- 1.54 to
12.43 +/- 1.15 mug/m(3), respectively. Similarly, PM(10) and total PAHs were in the range of 3.95 +/- 1.21 to 8.81 +/- 0.78 and 7.75 +/- 1.42 to 15.77 +/- 1.05 mug/m(3), respectively. The pollutant levels during cooking were significantly higher compared to the noncooking period. The study confirmed that indoor pollution depends on the kind of biomass fuel used for cooking.
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The exposure levels of PM2.5 and PM10 does not seems to be realistic. Either the exposure levels should be much higher than mentioned in this abstract or the unit should be mg/m3 instead of µg/m3.