Distributions and health risks of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in atmospheric aerosols of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The concentrations and distributions of particle bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) collected over a 10 month period in ambient environment, at street levels as well as during a hazy episode are reported. Ambient and street level distributions of PAHs were similar and their occurrence was attributed to vehicular emissions. However, in haze particles, a different pattern of PAHs was observed, characterized by relatively low levels of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) and high levels of benzofluoranthenes (BFs). The BaP equivalency results showed that the potential health risk associated with haze smoke particles was 4 times higher than that of street level particles whereas the lowest health risk was associated with ambient atmospheric particles.