Indoor exposure to respirable particulate matter and particulate-phase PAHs in rural homes in North India.

In order to evaluate the exposure of the northern India rural population to polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) inhalation, indoor pollution was assessed by collecting and analyzing the respirable particulate matter PM and PM in several homes of the village Bhithauli near Lucknow, UP. The home selection was determined by a survey. Given the nature of biomass used for cooking, homes were divided into two groups, one using all kinds of biomass and the second type using plant materials only. Indoor mean concentrations of PM and associated PAHs during cooking ranged from 1.19 ± 0.29 to 2.38 ± 0.35 and 6.21 ± 1.54 to 12.43 ± 1.15 μg/m, respectively. Similarly, PM and total PAHs were in the range of 3.95 ± 1.21 to 8.81 ± 0.78 and 7.75 ± 1.42 to 15.77 ± 1.05 μg/m, respectively. The pollutant levels during cooking were significantly higher compared to the noncooking period. The study confirmed that indoor pollution depends on the kind of biomass fuel used for cooking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]