A lot of research is done on dioxin emissions in near all Western countries. PAH emissions are more seldom investigated. Very rare are simultaneous measurements from the same sources for PAH's and dioxins. Here follows the first comprehensive investigation of PAH and dioxin emissions of many sources in Flanders (Northern Belgium) [59]:
The total emission of dioxins/furans is 274 gram I-TEQ per year from most known sources. The total emission of PAH's is 284 tonnes (!) per year. If we use an estimate of 1% BaP (benzo-a-pyrene) in the PAH's, then the total yearly emission of BaP surpasses the amount of I-TEQ dioxins with a factor 10,000
Based on the cancer risk for rats, BaP is app. 20 times less carcinogenic than TCDD-dioxin. For cancer initiating/promoting activity, the amounts of BaP emitted are still a factor 500 more relevant for cancer risk than dioxins. For other health effects (based on the Ah-receptor affinity) that is a factor 2,000.
The most relevant sources of dioxins and PAH's in descending order for
dioxins with relative health effects, with some addition from other sources
in the literature:
| Health comparison of PCDD/F and PAH emissions | ||||||
| Process: | PCDD/F g I-TEQ/yr | PAH's ton/yr | BaP kg/yr | Cancer risk BaP:TEQ | toxicity BaP:TEQ | Source |
| Iron and steel production: | 118.000 | 1.859 | 18.59 | 8 | 32 | [59] |
| Household heating: | 53.000 | 33.457 | 334.57 | 316 | 1263 | [59] |
| Incineration of household waste: | 9.170 | 0.029 | 0.29 | 2 | 6 | [59] |
| Industrial heating: | 3.400 | 1.093 | 10.93 | 161 | 643 | [59] |
| Electricity generation: | 1.470 | 0.078 | 0.78 | 27 | 106 | [59] |
| Road transport: | 1.100 | 111.700 | 1117.00 | 50773 | 203091 | [59] |
| Backyard barrel burning (per 1000 ton): | 0.790 | 0.045 | 0.45 | 28 | 114 | [54] |
| Dieselmotor of three ships: | 0.108 | 0.033 | 0.33 | 154 | 615 | [5] |
| Soot of Düsseldorf airport fire (per ton): | 0.052 | 4.986 | 0.26 | 255 | 1019 | [29] |
| Wood smoke composition (per 1000 ton): | 25.000 | 0.050 | 2.65 | 5 | 21 | [61] |
Comment:
While there is a large variation in ratio between dioxins and PAH's,
the latter in all cases are emitted in (far) higher amounts as well as
in higher toxicological relevance. The lowest ratio seems to be incineration
of household waste, where the BaP to TEQ ratio is only 30:1, still 1.5
times higher in cancer "rate" and 6 times higher in toxicology "rate".
This is probably the result of process conditions and stack gas treatment,
as the same waste in backyard barrel burning
had a measured BaP to dioxin ration of 400:1 to 16,000:1.
Even if PVC would be responsable for all dioxin emissions in hospital waste incineration, that is completely surpassed by the 200 fold higher dioxin emissions of the iron/steel industry, mainly from iron ore sintering, based on entirely natural, uncontaminated raw materials.
You are at level two of the Chlorophiles pages.
Created: September 28, 1999.
Last update: September 8, 2001.
Chlorine input and dioxin emissions
Dioxin releases of materials during their life cycle
For any comment on sources of dioxins or other Chlorophiles pages:
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