Spatial variability of atmospheric pbdes levels in Mendoza city, Argentina: a dispersion modelling approach

RUGGERI, M. F.; LANA, N.B.; ALLENDE, D.G.; ALTAMIRANO, J.C.; PULLIAFITO, E.

Congreso; 8TH INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON FLAME RETARDANTS -BFR 2017; 2017

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have been worldwide used in polymersof electrical appliances as flame retardants. They are released to theenvironment along production, recycling, usage and final disposal of goods. Thesecompounds tend to persist and accumulate in the environment, and once theyenter the organisms, several toxic effects may be caused1.To determine analytically the levels of these substances in theatmosphere, one of the most common and currently used method is passivesampling. The application of this technique considers that atmosphericconcentrations are generally low, so that large amounts of sample are needed toquantify them. As a result, low temporal resolution of measurements isobtained, in the order of months2. In addition to the sampling, the concentration of PBDEs in air can beestimated using dispersion models, which are presented as an option to obtain aspatial and temporal overview with greater coverage. Moreover, some correlationsbetween the anthropic activities that produce the emissions and the pollutantlevels in the environment can be established, as well as the expected levels inassociation with different scenarios.In this context, the aim of this study is to present an atmosphericdispersion model with high spatiotemporal resolution of PBDEs in the GreatMendoza (Figure 1), a typical area of Latin America with a mid-sizeurbanized center surrounded by agricultural sectors in a complex terrain. Basedon a high resolution emissions inventory of PBDEs for the study area3, a simulation of the atmospheric dispersion wasperformed using the WRF/CALMET/CALPUFF modeling system, which is particularlysuitable for estimating atmospheric concentrations in complex environments. Thedata was organized under a domain of 90x90 km2 centered on the NorthOasis of Mendoza, grouping emissions into cells of 1 km×1 km. The generateddispersion maps capture the concentration gradients, being possible itsapplication in the evaluation of human exposure and in the design of monitoringnetworks. To evaluate the performance of the model, the data were compared withmeasurements obtained by passive sampling.