Effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in Malaysia
Motor vehicles emit most Malaysian PAHs in particulate matter of 2.5 μm (PM2.5-bound PAHs). Although traffic-related air pollution harms healthy people, there is a knowledge gap regarding PAHs’ effects on Malaysians. This study examines PM2.5-bound PAH concentrations, distribution, sources, and heal...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science
2024
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| Online Access: | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/117642/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/117642/1/117642.pdf |
| _version_ | 1848867303622443008 |
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| author | Al-Battawi, Samer Latif, Mohd Talib How, Vivien Thilakavathy, Karuppiah Abd Hamid, Haris Hafizal Tan, Chung Keat Ho, Yu Bin |
| author_facet | Al-Battawi, Samer Latif, Mohd Talib How, Vivien Thilakavathy, Karuppiah Abd Hamid, Haris Hafizal Tan, Chung Keat Ho, Yu Bin |
| author_sort | Al-Battawi, Samer |
| building | UPM Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Motor vehicles emit most Malaysian PAHs in particulate matter of 2.5 μm (PM2.5-bound PAHs). Although traffic-related air pollution harms healthy people, there is a knowledge gap regarding PAHs’ effects on Malaysians. This study examines PM2.5-bound PAH concentrations, distribution, sources, and health risks in Malaysia’s high and low-traffic zones. Kuala Lumpur (KL) and Hulu Langat (HL) exhibit Malaysia’s high- and low-traffic areas. The high-volume air sampler collected 40 ambient PM2.5 samples at both locations. Solid-phase extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) assessed PAHs. The mean PM2.5-bound PAH concentrations in KL (5.85 ng m-3) were significantly higher than in HL (0.55 ng m-3) (p<0.001). KL has nine times more low-molecular-weight PAHs (LMW-PAHs) (2.63 vs. 0.27 ng m-3) and eleven times more high-molecular-weight PAHs (HMW-PAHs) (3.22 vs. 0.28 ng m-3) than HL. Over 51% of PM2.5 air samples at both sites included HMW-PAHs. Source apportionment tools (Diagnostic ratio, positive matrix factorization, and principal component analysis) showed that fossil fuel combustions (petrol and diesel) produced the greatest PAHs in both locations. Moreover, PAH exposure impinged higher carcinogenic health risks in KL than in HL. In conclusion, traffic and automobile pollution account for the short- and long-term health risks posed by PAHs in both regions. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-15T14:34:21Z |
| format | Article |
| id | upm-117642 |
| institution | Universiti Putra Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-15T14:34:21Z |
| publishDate | 2024 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | upm-1176422025-06-03T07:37:28Z http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/117642/ Effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in Malaysia Al-Battawi, Samer Latif, Mohd Talib How, Vivien Thilakavathy, Karuppiah Abd Hamid, Haris Hafizal Tan, Chung Keat Ho, Yu Bin Motor vehicles emit most Malaysian PAHs in particulate matter of 2.5 μm (PM2.5-bound PAHs). Although traffic-related air pollution harms healthy people, there is a knowledge gap regarding PAHs’ effects on Malaysians. This study examines PM2.5-bound PAH concentrations, distribution, sources, and health risks in Malaysia’s high and low-traffic zones. Kuala Lumpur (KL) and Hulu Langat (HL) exhibit Malaysia’s high- and low-traffic areas. The high-volume air sampler collected 40 ambient PM2.5 samples at both locations. Solid-phase extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) assessed PAHs. The mean PM2.5-bound PAH concentrations in KL (5.85 ng m-3) were significantly higher than in HL (0.55 ng m-3) (p<0.001). KL has nine times more low-molecular-weight PAHs (LMW-PAHs) (2.63 vs. 0.27 ng m-3) and eleven times more high-molecular-weight PAHs (HMW-PAHs) (3.22 vs. 0.28 ng m-3) than HL. Over 51% of PM2.5 air samples at both sites included HMW-PAHs. Source apportionment tools (Diagnostic ratio, positive matrix factorization, and principal component analysis) showed that fossil fuel combustions (petrol and diesel) produced the greatest PAHs in both locations. Moreover, PAH exposure impinged higher carcinogenic health risks in KL than in HL. In conclusion, traffic and automobile pollution account for the short- and long-term health risks posed by PAHs in both regions. Public Library of Science 2024-12-12 Article PeerReviewed text en cc_by_4 http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/117642/1/117642.pdf Al-Battawi, Samer and Latif, Mohd Talib and How, Vivien and Thilakavathy, Karuppiah and Abd Hamid, Haris Hafizal and Tan, Chung Keat and Ho, Yu Bin (2024) Effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in Malaysia. PLoS ONE, 19 (12). art. no. e0315439. ISSN 1932-6203 https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0315439 10.1371/journal.pone.0315439 |
| spellingShingle | Al-Battawi, Samer Latif, Mohd Talib How, Vivien Thilakavathy, Karuppiah Abd Hamid, Haris Hafizal Tan, Chung Keat Ho, Yu Bin Effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in Malaysia |
| title | Effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in Malaysia |
| title_full | Effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in Malaysia |
| title_fullStr | Effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in Malaysia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in Malaysia |
| title_short | Effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in Malaysia |
| title_sort | effect of traffic volumes on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons of particulate matter: a comparative study from urban and rural areas in malaysia |
| url | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/117642/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/117642/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/117642/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/117642/1/117642.pdf |