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Total TEQ emissions (PCDD/F and PCB) from industrial sources
Peter Luthardt1, Johannes Mayer, Joachim Fuchs
1GfA Gesellschaft für Arbeitsplatz- und Umweltanalytik mbH, Münster, Germany. pluthardt@gfa-ms.de
Chemosphere
|May 11, 2002
Summary
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) contribute up to 16% to the total toxicity of flue gases, with PCB-126 being the most significant. Thermodynamic stability calculations showed partial correlation with real-world PCB distribution.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Chemistry
- Chemical Engineering
Background:
- Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent organic pollutants.
- Assessing their environmental impact requires understanding their distribution and toxic contribution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze PCDD/Fs and PCBs in flue gas samples.
- To calculate total Toxicity Equivalents (TEQ) and assess PCB contribution.
- To investigate the thermodynamic stability of PCBs and its relation to real-world distribution.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of flue gas samples from industrial plants and crematories.
- Calculation of TEQ values using 1998 WHO toxicity equivalent factors.
- Semiempirical calculation of PCB thermodynamic stability (Heat of Formation) using MOPAC.
Main Results:
- PCBs contributed up to 16% to the total TEQ.
- PCB-126 was the major contributor to the TEQ among the 12 WHO-listed PCBs.
- A partial correspondence was found between calculated thermodynamic stability and observed PCB distribution.
Conclusions:
- PCBs are a significant contributor to the overall toxicity of flue gases.
- Thermodynamic stability offers some predictive power for PCB distribution in environmental samples.