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Air quality inside transportation carriages has become a public concern. A comprehensive measurement campaign was conducted to examine the commuters’ exposure to PM 2.5 (d p ⩽ 2.5 μm) and CO 2 in Shanghai metro system under different conditions. The PM 2.5 and CO 2 concentrations inside all the measured metro lines were observed at 84 ± 42 μg/m 3 and 1253.1 ± 449.1 ppm, respectively. The factors that determine the in-carriage PM 2.5 and CO 2 concentrations were quantitatively investigated. The metro in-carriage PM 2.5 concentrations were significantly affected by the ventilation systems, out-carriage PM 2.5 concentrations and the passenger numbers. The largest in-carriage PM 2.5 and CO 2 concentrations were observed at 132 μg/m 3 and 1855.0 ppm inside the carriages equipped with the oldest ventilation systems. The average PM 2.5 and CO 2 concentrations increased by 24.14% and 9.93% as the metro was driven from underground to overground. The average in-carriage PM 2.5 concentrations increased by 17.19% and CO 2 concentration decreased by 16.97% as the metro was driven from urban to the suburban area. It was found that PM 2.5 concentration is proportional to the on-board passenger number at a ratio of 0.4 μg/m 3 ·passenger. A mass-balance model was developed to estimate the in-carriage PM 2.5 concentration under different driving conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air pollution in transportation cabins has recently become a public concern. However, few studies assessed the exposure levels of suspected air pollutants including Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). This paper studied the exposure levels of in-carriage VOCs (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene, styrene, formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acetone and acrolein) in Shanghai, China and estimated the health risk in different conditions. The results indicated that VOCs concentrations in metro carriages varied from different train models, due to the difference in carriage size and ventilation system. The concentrations of aromatic VOCs in old metro carriage were 1–2 times higher than the new ones, as better paintings were used in new trains. Poor air circulation and ventilation in the underground track was likely to be the cause of higher VOCs levels (~ 10%) than the above-ground track. Lower aromatic compounds levels and higher carbonyls levels were observed in metro carriages at suburban areas than those at urban areas, likely due to less aromatic emission sources and more carbonyls emission sources in suburban areas. Acetone and acrolein were found to increase from 7.71 to 26.28 μg/m 3 with number of commuters increasing from 40 to 200 in the carriages. According to the acceptable level proposed by the World Health Organization (1 × 10 − 6 –1 × 10 − 5 ), the life carcinogenic risk of commuters by subway (8.5 × 10 − 6 -4.8 × 10 − 5 ) was little above the acceptable level in Shanghai. Further application of our findings is possible to act as a reference in facilitating regulations for metro systems in other cities around world, so that in-carriage air quality might be improved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air quality in transportation microenvironment has received widespread attention. In this study, the exposure levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter that have a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5) in Shanghai metro system were measured simultaneously, and their risks to human health under different driving conditions were then assessed. The results showed that VOCs, PM2.5 concentrations and life cancer risk (LCR) of four VOCs (benzene, formaldehyde, ethylbenzene, and acetaldehyde) in the old metro carriages were about 3 times, 3 times and 2 times higher than those in the new metro carriages, respectively. This difference can be ascribed to the fact that air filtration system in the new metro trains is significantly improved. The VOC levels, PM2.5 concentrations and LCR of VOCs on the above-ground track were slightly higher than those on the underground track. This is due to less outdoor polluted air entering into the carriage on the underground track. Number of passengers also had an effect on VOCs and PM2.5 concentrations in metro carriages. Additionally, the LCR of VOCs inside metro trains should not be ignored (7.69 × 10−6~1.47 × 10−5), especially inside old metro trains with the old ventilation system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]