Plasticizers in the indoor environment

School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry, University of Oldenburg, 

On average, people in moderate climates are supposed to spend up to 95% of their time indoors. Residents of the Federal Republic of Germany, depending on the season and vocational activity, stay between 80% and 90% of their time in an indoor environment and most of this time is spent in their homes. The National Human Activity Pattern Survey, NHAPS, of the USA recorded adults to spend an average of 87% of their time in enclosed buildings and about 6% in enclosed vehicles.  

Abbreviation Description Boiling point range, C Examples 

POM particulate organic matter 380 pesticides (pyrethroids), polycyclic aromatic hyciocarbons, phthalates and organophosphates having high boiling points (e.g., TCP, DEHP) 

Plasticizers are mixed into polymers to increase flexibility and workability. The phosphoric acid esters, i.e., organophosphates, are also remarkable flame retardants, and for this reason they are extensively used in plastics. At present, some 300 plasticizers are manufactured, of which at least 100 are of commercial importance. Most reports on plasticizers known to be present in the indoor environment are either on phthalate esters (phthalates) or on phosphate esters (organophosphates). Their production capacities are high, they may reach from some thousand tons per year (e.g., TCEP) up to some million tons (DEHP) (Table 17.5.2). 

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Carlsson H, Nilsson U, Becker G, Ostman C (1997) Organophosphate ester flame retardants and plasticizers in the indoor environment analytical methodology and occurrence. Environ Sci Technol 31 2931-2396... 

Butte, W. (2004c) Plasticizers in the indoor environment, in Handbook of Plasticizers (ed. G. Wypych), ChemTec Publishing, Toronto, Canada, pp. 568-89. 

IMPACT OF PLASTICIZERS IN THE INDOOR ENVIRONMENT 17.5.4.1 Indoor Plasticizers and Health... 

Human Exposure Assessment for Plasticizers in the Indoor Environment... 

For the interpretation of results obtained from monitoring plasticizers in the indoor environment in general two approaches might be used ... 

Wensing, M., Uhde, E. and Salthammer, T. (2005) Plastics additives in the indoor environment-flame retardants and plasticizers. The Science of the Total Environment, 339, 19 40. 

For further information on plasticizers (organophosphates and phthalates) in the indoor environment see Butte (2004c) and Wensing, Uhde and Salthammer (2005). 

The final use of chemical products can result in the release of hazardous substances affecting man and the environment. Chemicals can be released from products used in the indoor environment, released to the atmosphere when a product is used outside, and released to groundwater if the chemicals leach out of a product in a landfill. Data are extremely limited on how many chemical products there are on the market today, on their chemical content, and on whether - and how - they may be releasing hazardous substances to the environment. Recent studies have shown that, in some cases, the majority of emissions released during the entire lifecycle occur during the service life of the product, rather than during production. A study conducted by TNO estimated that over 75 percent of total emissions to the environment from phthalates in plastics, brominated flame retardants in plastics, and zinc from tires occurred during the service life (TNO, 2001). 

Terpenes are widely present in the indoor environment. They are incorporated in cleaners, plastics, adhesives, and other products. Ozone and... 

Terpenes are widely present in the indoor environment. They are incorporated in cleaners, plastics, adhesives, and other products. Ozone and nitrogen dioxide are common environmental pollutants. The reactions between these species are representative of other reactions that occur in polluted air and the products formed by their reactions help explain why large numbers of people are impacted even when the atmospheric levels of the polluting species are below NOEL levels. 

Occupational and environmental exposure to chemicals can take place both indoors and outdoors. Occupational exposure is caused by the chemicals that are used and produced indoors in industrial plants, whereas nonoccupa-tional (and occupational nonindustrial) indoor exposure is mainly caused by products. Toluene in printing plants and styrene in the reinforced plastic industry are typical examples of the two types of industrial occupational exposures. Products containing styrene polymers may release the styrene monomer into indoor air in the nonindustrial environment for a long time. Formaldehyde is another typical indoor pollutant. The source of formaldehyde is the resins used in the production process. During accidents, occupational and environmental exposures may occur simultaneously. Years ago, dioxin was formed as a byproduct of production of phenoxy acid herbicides. An explosion in a factory in... 

The extensive use of phthalates as plasticizers in various materials (furniture, plastics, electronics equipment, textiles, etc.) has led to the widespread and substantial contamination of the indoor environment, e.g., air and dust [3, 96, 97]. Indoor environment and dietary intake are of special concern for the increasing... 

Due to their high volume production and their widespread use, phthalates, as well as some other chemicals present in the domestic environment, are potentially important indoor contaminants. In addition, people working in industrial plants producing plasticizers or hving near such plants may be exposed, via indoor air inhalation, to levels of these pollutants that could constitute a significant contribution to the total daily intake (Otaka et al. 2001). 

Because of volatilization and leaching from their application in consumer and personal care products, phthalate esters are ubiquitous contaminants in indoor environment, and the levels found in dust from homes in different countries (Table 2), showed that the less volatile phthalates such as DEHP and BBP, are the predominant in dust samples [11,16, 74], and that the percentage of both carpet and plastic materials (furniture, decoration, and home electronics) could be associated with higher concentrations of BBP and DEHP in house dust [12, 74, 75]. The proportion of DiNP in house dust from Germany in 2009 [12], indicates that the... 

Bergman A, Oestman C, Nybom R, et al. 1997. Flame retardants and plasticizers on particulates in the modem computerized indoor environment. Organohalogen Compounds 1987 414-419. 

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