Low-Cost Indoor Sensor Deployment for Predicting PM Exposure.

Indoor air quality is critical to human health, as individuals spend an average of 90% of their time indoors. However, indoor particulate matter (PM) sensor networks are not deployed as often as outdoor sensor networks. In this study, indoor PM exposure is investigated via 2 low-cost sensor networks in Pittsburgh.

Low-Cost Hourly Ambient Black Carbon Measurements at Multiple Cities in Africa.

There is a notable lack of continuous monitoring of air pollutants in the Global South, especially for measuring chemical composition, due to the high cost of regulatory monitors. Using our previously developed low-cost method to quantify black carbon (BC) in fine particulate matter (PM) by analyzing reflected red light from ambient particle deposits on glass fiber filters, we estimated hourly ambient BC concentrations with filter tapes from beta attenuation monitors (BAMs). BC measurements obtained through this method were validated against a reference aethalometer between August 2 and 23, 2023 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, demonstrating a very strong agreement ( = 0.

The application of PTR-MS and non-targeted analysis to characterize VOCs emitted from a plastic recycling facility fire.

Background: On April 11th, 2023, the My Way Trading (MWT) recycling facility in Richmond, Indiana caught fire, mandating the evacuation of local residents and necessitating the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to conduct air monitoring.

Hyper-local to regional exposure contrast of source-resolved PM components across the contiguous United States: implications for health assessment.

Background: Improved understanding of sources and processes that drive exposure contrast of fine particulate matter (PM) is essential for designing and interpreting epidemiological study outcomes.

Objective: We investigate the contribution of various sources and processes to PM exposure contrasts at different spatial scales across the continental United States.

Methods: We consider three cases: exposure contrast within a metro area, nationwide exposure contrast with high spatial resolution, and nationwide exposure contrast with low spatial resolution.

Ambient Ultrafine Particulate Matter and Clinical Outcomes in Fibrotic Interstitial Lung Disease.

Particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ⩽2.5 μm is associated with adverse outcomes in fibrotic interstitial lung disease (fILD), but the impact of ultrafine particulates (UFPs; aerodynamic diameter ⩽100 nm) remains unknown. To evaluate UFP associations with clinical outcomes in fILD.

Primary and Secondary Organic Aerosol Formation from Asphalt Pavements.

Asphalt is ubiquitous across cities and a source of organic compounds spanning a wide range of volatility and may be an overlooked source of urban organic aerosols. The emission rate and composition depend strongly on temperature, but emissions have been observed at both application temperatures and surface temperatures during warm sunny days. Here we report primary organic aerosol (POA) emissions and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) production from asphalt.

Generating High Spatial Resolution Exposure Estimates from Sparse Regulatory Monitoring Data.

Random Forest algorithms have extensively been used to estimate ambient air pollutant concentrations. However, the accuracy of model-predicted estimates can suffer from extrapolation problems associated with limited measurement data to train the machine learning algorithms. In this study, we developed and evaluated two approaches, incorporating low-cost sensor data, that enhanced the extrapolating ability of random-forest models in areas with sparse monitoring data.

Air Pollutant Patterns and Human Health Risk following the East Palestine, Ohio, Train Derailment.

On February 3, 2023, a train carrying numerous hazardous chemicals derailed in East Palestine, OH, spurring temporary evacuation of residents and a controlled burn of some of the hazardous cargo. Residents reported health symptoms, including headaches and respiratory, skin, and eye irritation. Initial data from U.

Living in environmental justice areas worsens asthma severity and control: Differential interactions with disease duration, age at onset, and pollution.

Background: Impoverished and historically marginalized communities often reside in areas with increased air pollution.

Objective: We evaluated the association between environmental justice (EJ) track and asthma severity and control as modified by traffic-related air pollution (TRAP).

Methods: We performed a retrospective study of 1526 adult asthma patients in Allegheny County, Pa, enrolled in an asthma registry during 2007-20.

Examining the Cross-sectional Association Between Neighborhood Conditions, Discrimination, and Telomere Length in a Predominantly African American Sample.

Disproportionate exposure to adverse neighborhood conditions and greater discrimination may contribute to health disparities among African Americans (AAs). We examined whether adverse neighborhood conditions, alone or in conjunction with discrimination, associate with shorter leukocyte telomere length among a predominantly AA cohort. The sample included 200 residents from two low-income neighborhoods (96% AA; mean age = 67 years).

National Exposure Models for Source-Specific Primary Particulate Matter Concentrations Using Aerosol Mass Spectrometry Data.

This paper investigates the feasibility of developing national empirical models to predict ambient concentrations of sparsely monitored air pollutants at high spatial resolution. We used a data set of cooking organic aerosol (COA) and hydrocarbon-like organic aerosol (HOA; traffic primary organic PM) measured using aerosol mass spectrometry across the continental United States. The monitoring locations were selected to span the national distribution of land-use and source-activity variables commonly used for land-use regression modeling (e.

Mortality risk and long-term exposure to ultrafine particles and primary fine particle components in a national U.S. Cohort.

The objective of this study was to estimate all-cause, cardiopulmonary, and cancer mortality associations for long-term exposure to ultrafine particles (UFP) and primary PM components. We utilized high-resolution, national-scale exposure estimates for UFP (measured as particle number concentration; PNC) and three primary PM components, namely black carbon (BC), traffic-emitted organic PM (hereafter, hydrocarbon-like organic aerosols; HOA), and cooking-emitted organic PM (cooking organic aerosols; COA). Two analytic cohorts were constructed from a nationally representative U.

Watching Paint Dry: Organic Vapor Emissions from Architectural Coatings and their Impact on Secondary Organic Aerosol Formation.

Emissions from volatile chemical products (VCPs) are emerging as a major source of anthropogenic secondary organic aerosol (SOA) precursors. Paints and coatings are an important class of VCPs that emit both volatile and intermediate volatility organic compounds (VOCs and IVOCs). In this study, we directly measured I/VOC emissions from representative water- (latex) and oil-based paints used in the U.

Aerosol Generation During Nasal Airway Instrumentation.

Objective: Airborne aerosol transmission, an established mechanism of SARS-CoV-2 spread, has been successfully mitigated in the health care setting through the adoption of universal masking. Upper airway endoscopy, however, requires direct access to the face, thereby potentially exposing the clinic environment to infectious particles. This study quantifies aerosol production during rigid nasal endoscopy (RNE) and RNE with debridement (RNED) as compared with intubation, a posited gold standard aerosol-generating procedure.

Limited Secondary Organic Aerosol Production from Acyclic Oxygenated Volatile Chemical Products.

Volatile chemical products (VCPs) have recently been identified as potentially important unconventional sources of secondary organic aerosol (SOA), in part due to the mitigation of conventional emissions such as vehicle exhaust. Here, we report measurements of SOA production in an oxidation flow reactor from a series of common VCPs containing oxygenated functional groups and at least one oxygen within the molecular backbone. These include two oxygenated aromatic species (phenoxyethanol and 1-phenoxy-2-propanol), two esters (butyl butyrate and butyl acetate), and four glycol ethers (carbitol, methyl carbitol, butyl carbitol, and hexyl carbitol).

Relationship between socioeconomic status, exposure to airborne pollutants, and chronic rhinosinusitis disease severity.

Background: Air pollution directly interacts with airway mucosa, yet little is known about how pollutants affect upper airway inflammation. Studies have shown increased incidence of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), rhinitis, and asthma in areas with higher traffic pollution, and these neighborhoods are often associated with lower socioeconomic status (SES). The Area Deprivation Index (ADI) assesses neighborhood-level SES by zip code.

Characterizing the Aging of Alphasense NO Sensors in Long-Term Field Deployments.

Low-cost NO sensors have been widely deployed for atmospheric sampling. While their initial performance has been characterized, few studies have examined their long-term degradation. This study focused on the performance of Alphasense low-cost NO sensors (NO2-B42F and NO2-B43F) over 4 years (2016-2020).

High-Spatial-Resolution Estimates of Ultrafine Particle Concentrations across the Continental United States.

There is growing evidence that ultrafine particles (UFP; particles smaller than 100 nm) are likely more toxic than larger particles. However, the health effects of UFP remain uncertain due in part to the lack of large-scale population-based exposure assessment. We develop a national-scale empirical model of particle number concentration (PNC; a measure of UFP) using data from mobile monitoring and fixed sites across the United States and a land-use regression (LUR) modeling framework.

Spatial Modeling of Daily PM, NO, and CO Concentrations Measured by a Low-Cost Sensor Network: Comparison of Linear, Machine Learning, and Hybrid Land Use Models.

Previous studies have characterized spatial patterns of pollution with land use regression (LUR) models from distributed passive or filter samplers at low temporal resolution. Large-scale deployment of low-cost sensors (LCS), which typically sample in real time, may enable time-resolved or real-time modeling of concentration surfaces. The aim of this study was to develop spatiotemporal models of PM, NO, and CO using an LCS network in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Impact of a pollution breach at a coke oven factory on asthma control in nearby vulnerable adults.

Background: Previous studies have related sulfur dioxide (SO) exposure to asthma exacerbations. We utilized the University of Pittsburgh Asthma Institute registry to study associations of asthma exacerbations between 2 geographically distinct populations of adults with asthma.

Objective: Our objective was to examine whether asthma symptoms worsened following a significant fire event that destroyed pollution control equipment at the largest coke works in the United States.

Changes in criteria air pollution levels in the US before, during, and after Covid-19 stay-at-home orders: Evidence from regulatory monitors.

The widespread and rapid social and economic changes from Covid-19 response might be expected to dramatically improve air quality. However, national monitoring data from the US Environmental Protection Agency for criteria pollutants (PM, ozone, NO, CO, PM) provide inconsistent support for that expectation. Specifically, during stay-at-home orders, average PM levels were slightly higher (~10% of its multi-year interquartile range [IQR]) than expected; average ozone, NO, CO, and PM levels were slightly lower (~30%, ~20%, ~27%, and ~1% of their IQR, respectively) than expected.

Lagged Association of Ambient Outdoor Air Pollutants with Asthma-Related Emergency Department Visits within the Pittsburgh Region.

Asthma affects millions of people globally and is especially concerning in populations living with poor air quality. This study examines the association of ambient outdoor air pollutants on asthma-related emergency department (ED) visits in children and adults throughout the Pittsburgh region. A time-stratified case-crossover design is used to analyze the lagged effects of fine particulate matter (PM) and gaseous pollutants, e.

Asthma prevalence and control among schoolchildren residing near outdoor air pollution sites.

Introduction: Outdoor air pollution (OAP) contributes to poor asthma outcomes and remains a public health concern in Pittsburgh. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of childhood asthma and its rate of control among Pittsburgh schoolchildren residing near OAP sites.

Methods: Participants were recruited from schools near OAP sites.

Asphalt-related emissions are a major missing nontraditional source of secondary organic aerosol precursors.

Asphalt-based materials are abundant and a major nontraditional source of reactive organic compounds in urban areas, but their emissions are essentially absent from inventories. At typical temperature and solar conditions simulating different life cycle stages (i.e.