Aerosol Particles Generated by Diesel-Powered School Buses at Urban Schools as a Source of Children’s Exposure

Details

• Personal Author:
  Grinshpun SA ; Hochstetler HA ; Reponen T ; Ryan PH ; Yermakov M
• Description:
  Various heath effects in children have been associated with exposure to traffic-related particulate matter (PM), including emissions from school buses. In this study, the indoor and outdoor aerosol at four urban elementary schools serviced by diesel-powered school buses was characterized with respect to the particle number concentrations and size distributions as well as the PM2.5 mass concentrations and elemental compositions. It was determined that the presence of school buses significantly affected the outdoor particle size distribution, specifically in the ultrafine fraction. The time-weighted average of the total number concentration measured outside the schools was significantly associated with the bus and the car counts. The concentration increase was consistently observed during the morning drop-off hours and in most of the days during the afternoon pick-up period (although at a lower degree). Outdoor PM2.5 mass concentrations measured at schools ranged from 3.8 to 27.6 µg m-3. The school with the highest number of operating buses exhibited the highest average PM2.5 mass concentration. The outdoor mass concentrations of elemental carbon (EC) and organic carbon (OC) were also highest at the school with the greatest number of buses. Most (47/55) correlations between traffic-related elements identified in the outdoor PM2.5 were significant with elements identified in the indoor PM2.5. Significant associations were observed between indoor and outdoor aerosols for EC, EC/OC, and the total particle number concentration. Day-to-day and school-to-school variations in Indoor/Outdoor (I/O) ratios were related to the observed differences in opening windows and doors, which enhanced the particle penetration, as well as indoor activities at schools. Overall, the results on I/O ratio obtained in this study reflect the sizes of particles emitted by diesel-powered school bus engines (primarily, an ultrafine fraction capable of penetrating indoors). [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aerosols Air Pollution, Indoor Automobiles Environmental Exposure Occupational Health Particulate Matter Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Vehicle Emissions
• Keywords:
  Aerosol Particles Author Keywords: Traffic Aerosol Carbon Children Diesel Diesel Emissions Diesel Engines Exposure Levels Humans IAQ Indoor Indoor Air Quality Motor Vehicles Outdoor Outdoors Particulates PM2.5 Risk Factors School Bus Time Weighted Average Exposure Ultrafine Particles Ultrafine Particulates

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• ISSN:
  1352-2310
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  45
• Issue:
  7
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20050271
• Citation:
  Atmos Environ 2011 Mar; 45(7):1444-1453
• Contact Point Address:
  Sergey A. Grinshpun, Department of Environmental Health, University of Cincinnati, POB 670056, 3223 Eden Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45267-0056
• Email:
  sergey.grinshpun@uc.edu
• CAS Registry Number:
  Carbon (CAS RN 7440-44-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2011
• Performing Organization:
  University of Cincinnati
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Atmospheric Environment
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:750884589a0f70ad1a26c8685fef6a895d10de8af0f6a3c8a9a5b713295a9d710c5791abf7ee3205a6931323c956ecbaa1492b4d0121c64db8c8136a3d74beec
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/210691/cdc_210691_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 353.13 KB ]