title: Comparison of particulate matter exposure estimates in young children from personal sampling equipment and a robotic sampler.
abstract: Accurate characterization of particulate matter (PM) exposure in young children is difficult, because personal samplers are often too heavy, bulky or impractical to be used. The Pretoddler Inhalable Particulate Environmental Robotic (PIPER) sampler was developed to help address this problem. In this study, we measured inhalable PM exposures in 2-year-olds via a lightweight personal sampler worn in a small backpack and evaluated the use of a robotic sampler with an identical sampling train for estimating PM exposure in this age group. PM mass concentrations measured by the personal sampler ranged from 100 to almost 1,200 μg/m3, with a median value of 331 μg/m3. PM concentrations measured by PIPER were considerably lower, ranging from 14 to 513 μg/m3with a median value of 56 μg/m3. Floor cleaning habits and activity patterns of the 2-year-olds varied widely by home; vigorous play and recent floor cleaning were most associated with higher personal exposure. Our findings highlight the need for additional characterization of children's activity patterns and their effect on personal exposures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA.
authors.forename: Jessica A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Sagona
authors.affiliation: Division of Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: Stuart L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Shalat
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA.
authors.forename: Zuocheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA.
authors.forename: Maya
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ramagopal
authors.affiliation: Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, USA.
authors.forename: Kathleen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Black
authors.affiliation: Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, USA.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hernandez
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA.|Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, USA.
authors.forename: Gediminas
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mainelis
mesh_terms: D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor / Q000032:analysis*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005430:Floors and Floorcoverings; D006801:Humans; D019570:Inhalation Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D008297:Male; D009515:New Jersey; D010316:Particle Size; D052638:Particulate Matter / Q000032:analysis*; D012371:Robotics / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D052638:Particulate Matter