Spatiotemporal distribution, source apportionment and cancer risk of PM-bound PCDD/Fs, PCBs and PCNs in three East Asian cities with contrasting emissions: Ulaanbaatar, Beijing and Taipei area.

Authors

Shahzada Amani Room, Po Jui Chen, Wei Chen Yeh, Lodoysamba Sereeter, Sheng Lun Lin, Yu-Cheng Chen, Charless C-K Chou, Phan Van Sang, Kaleem Khan, Shih Yu Pan, Kai Hsien Chi

Published in

Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987). Pages 129475. Nov 10, 2026. Epub Nov 10, 2026.

Abstract

Despite growing concern over persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in East Asia, their source profiles, seasonal dynamics and cancer risks across cities with contrasting emission regimes remain poorly characterized. To our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive study characterizing PM-bound polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and furans (PCDD/Fs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) across Ulaanbaatar, Beijing and the Taipei area. Ambient samples were collected over distinct periods: 61 TSP samples from Ulaanbaatar (including one dust-event sample); 24 from Beijing (22 PM_2.5, 2 TSP dust samples) and 26 PM_2.5 from Taipei area. Due to different particle-size fractions, quantitative comparisons were restricted to PM_2.5 in Beijing and Taipei area, with Ulaanbaatar TSP evaluated independently; TSP dust samples were examined for regional context. Mean PM_2.5-bound TEQ concentrations followed Beijing > Taipei (PCDD/Fs: 107 vs. 11.5 fg TEQ_WHO2022/m³; PCBs: 0.88 vs. 0.013 fg TEQ_WHO2022/m³; PCNs: 0.44 vs. 0.017 fg TEQ/m³). Ulaanbaatar showed elevated TSP-bound PCDD/F, PCB and PCN TEQs (128, 1.32 fg TEQ_WHO2022/m³, and 0.30 fg TEQ/m³), consistent with combustion and traffic emissions. Seasonality was most pronounced in Beijing, where cold-season PCDD/F TEQs increased 19-fold, attributed to stagnant meteorology and intensified combustion. During dust events, Beijing's TSP-bound PCDD/F and PCB TEQ exceeded Ulaanbaatar's dust-event values (76.7 and 0.038 vs. 48.9 and 0.015 fg TEQ_WHO2022/m³). Positive Matrix Factorization identified distinct sources: PCDD/Fs from open burning and traffic in Ulaanbaatar, industrial waste incineration and dust-event influence in Beijing, and industrial boilers and combined municipal waste incineration/traffic emissions in the Taipei area; PCBs from woodchip boilers (all sites) plus MWI (Ulaanbaatar), coal combustion (Beijing), with EAF in Taipei area; PCNs were excluded from source apportionment because of weak source-profile correlations (r ≤ 0.43). Non-inhalation exposure dominated adult risk (65-90%), with PCDD/Fs driving >98% of carcinogenic risk; lifetime cancer risk exceeded the U.S. EPA threshold (1×10^-6) in Ulaanbaatar and Beijing.

PMID:
43009117
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 11 Nov 2026.

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