Outdoor/Indoor Air Concentrations of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in a Heavy Traffic Area of Cairo, Egypt
Mahmoud A. Hassanien
Air Pollution Department, National Research Centre, Dokki, Cairo, Egypt
Corresponding author: Dr. Mahmoud A. Hassanien, Assistant Professor
Department of Air Research and Pollution Control,
Division of Environmental Protection Research,
National Research Centre
Dokki, Cairo, Egypt
Fax number: + 202 337 0931
E-mail: mhassanien@gmail.com,
mahmoud_abdelmagid@yahoo.com,
mahmoud_hassanien@hotmail.com
CEJOEM 2006, Vol.12. No.1.: 23–34
Key words:
Traffic area, Cairo, suspended particulate matter, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, carcinogenic components
Abstract:
This study aims at quantifying the indoor and outdoor distribution of particulate matter (PM) and polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) that create health hazards and is, as yet, unregulated. In indoor and outdoor air of
a heavy traffic area of Cairo, Egypt, the concentrations of 18 PAHs were simultaneously analyzed using the gas
chromatograph/mass spectrometer (GC-MS) technique. With reference to particulate matter, the outdoor and indoor data
ranged from 134 to 750 and 99 to 861 µg/m3, respectively, revealing a close correlation (0.8) and high
significance (p = 0.001) between the two measuring sites. The PAH concentrations in outdoor air
generally exceeded those measured in the corresponding indoor air samples. The summed PAH concentrations in the
outdoor and indoor air were 37.3 and 29.7 ng/m3, respectively. Of the 18 PAHs, fluoranthene,
pyrene, chrysen, benzo(b)fluroanthene, dibenzo(a,h)anthracene, benzo(ghi)perylene, and benzo(a)pyrene
were the most abundant compounds. Their contribution to the sum of PAHs was more than 55–65%.
Received: 4 July 2006
Accepted: 18 October 2006
| Back |