Benzene: A critical review on measurement methodology, certified reference material, exposure limits with its impact on human health and mitigation strategies

Poonam Kumari,Daya Soni,Shankar G Aggarwal 환경독성보건학회 2024 환경독성보건학회지 Vol.39 No.2

Benzene is a carcinogenic pollutant with significant emission sources present in the atmosphere. The need for accurate and precise measurement of benzene in the atmosphere has become increasingly evident due to its toxicity and the adverse health effects associated with exposure to different concentrations. Certified reference material (CRM) is essential to establish the traceability of measurement results. The present review compiles the available national and international measurement methods, certified reference materials (CRMs) for benzene and the limit of benzene in fuel composition (v/v) worldwide. Overall, the review indicates the benzene level in the atmosphere and the resulting impacts on the environment and human health, which frequently exceed the exposure limits of different environment regulatory agencies. An extensive literature review was conducted to gather information on monitoring and analysis methods for benzene, revealing that the most preferred method, i.e. Gas Chromatography- Flame Ionization Detector and Mass Spectrometry, is neither cost-effective nor suitable for real-time continuous monitoring. By analysing existing literature and studies, this review will shed light on the understanding of the importance of benzene pollution monitoring in ambient air and its implications for public health. Additionally, it will reflect the mitigation strategies applied by regulators & need for future revisions of air quality guidelines.

Seasonal and diurnal measurement of ambient benzene at a high traffic inflation site in Delhi: Health risk assessment and its possible role in ozone formation pathways

Poonam Kumari,Daya Soni,Shankar G. Aggarwal,Khem Singh 환경독성보건학회 2023 환경독성보건학회지 Vol.38 No.3

Benzene is the most toxic and hazardous pollutant among volatile organic compounds (VOCs), as it comes under group 1 carcinogens recognized by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). It also plays a significant role in forming secondary pollutants like ozone. The benzene concentration was measured using a charcoal sorbent tube by active sampling at a traffic junction and analysis was done using GC-FID. The maximum average concentration of benzene in ambient air was found to be 33 μg/m3. A diurnal study of benzene measurement shows higher benzene concentrations in the evening compared to the morning. Seasonal variation of benzene is found to be winter > spring > summer > autumn > monsoon and OFP was found to be 21, 19, 14, 13, and 10 respectively. Cancer (ILCR) and non-cancer (HQ) health risk assessment was done to determine the impact of ambient benzene on the residents of urban areas. The yearly average value of ILCR was found to be 2×10<SUP>-6</SUP> ± 1×10<SUP>-6</SUP> which ranges from acceptable value to three times the WHO acceptable value i.e 1×10-6. The correlation of ozone and its precursor, benzene with meteorological parameters is also evaluated. The correlation of benzene and ozone with solar radiation shows the influence of photochemical reactions on the levels of benzene and ozone at the study site, although it is low.

Measurement of benzene and other volatile organic compounds: implications for its inhalation health risk associated with the workers at a fuel station in Delhi

Daya Soni,Poonam Kumari,Gazal Garg,Shankar G. Aggarwal 한국대기환경학회 2023 Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment (AJAE) Vol.17 No.1

Exposure to benzene and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) like toluene, ethylbenzene, o-, m-, and p-xylene (BTEX) at a fuel station is hazardous for the workers. This study aims to estimate the health risk for worker due to the exposure of BTEX after implementation of vapour recovery system (VRS) at fuel stations. Air samples were collected using low-flow sampling pump as per NIOSH method by using Tenax (sorbent) tubes and charcoal (sorbent) tubes. Target compounds were extracted using acetone and analysed by gas chromatography equipped with flame ionization detector (FID). The cancer risk (CR) and hazard quotient (HQ) were estimated to assess the cancer and noncancer risk following the United States of Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) updated methodology. The average concentration of VOCs at the fuel station is found in the order toluene > benzene > xylene > ethylbenzene which may be attributed to the composition of fuel (petrol/diesel). Benzene is the most carcinogenic among BTEX, which is found to be 217 ± 9 μg m− 3 and 158 ± 9 μg m− 3 in the month of November 2021 using Tenax sorbent and charcoal sorbent tubes, respectively. The high concentration observed using Tenax sorbent may be attributed to its high adsorption efficacy than charcoal due to larger surface area and porosity. The 7-month average CR value of benzene was 9 × 10− 4 using Tenax sorbent and exceeds the acceptable range of 1 × 10− 6. CR of benzene exposure at the fuel station under study is also compared with that of outdoor ambient air exposure. Benzene measurement data for the same duration was taken from nearby online monitoring station of Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) PUSA to estimate CR value for outdoor ambient air benzene exposure. The value of HQ for benzene was observed > 1 which exceeds the acceptable value and hence increased the non-cancer health risk also. Hazard index (HI) value for BTEX is also greater than 1 which indicates adverse health effects of benzene and other VOCs at the fuel station. The high CR and HQ values for benzene are a matter of concern for fuel station workers.

Analytical free vibration solution for angle-ply piezolaminated plate under cylindrical bending: A piezo-elasticity approach

Singh, Agyapal,Kumari, Poonam Techno-Press 2020 Advances in computational design Vol.5 No.1

For the first time, an accurate analytical solution, based on coupled three-dimensional (3D) piezoelasticity equations, is presented for free vibration analysis of the angle-ply elastic and piezoelectric flat laminated panels under arbitrary boundary conditions. The present analytical solution is applicable to composite, sandwich and hybrid panels having arbitrary angle-ply lay-up, material properties, and boundary conditions. The modified Hamiltons principle approach has been applied to derive the weak form of governing equations where stresses, displacements, electric potential, and electric displacement field variables are considered as primary variables. Thereafter, multi-term multi-field extended Kantorovich approach (MMEKM) is employed to transform the governing equation into two sets of algebraic-ordinary differential equations (ODEs), one along in-plane (x) and other along the thickness (z) direction, respectively. These ODEs are solved in closed-form manner, which ensures the same order of accuracy for all the variables (stresses, displacements, and electric variables) by satisfying the boundary and continuity equations in exact manners. A robust algorithm is developed for extracting the natural frequencies and mode shapes. The numerical results are reported for various configurations such as elastic panels, sandwich panels and piezoelectric panels under different sets of boundary conditions. The effect of ply-angle and thickness to span ratio (s) on the dynamic behavior of the panels are also investigated. The presented 3D analytical solution will be helpful in the assessment of various 1D theories and numerical methods.

Free vibration of Levy-type rectangular laminated plates using efficient zig-zag theory

Behera, Susanta,Kumari, Poonam Techno-Press 2018 Advances in computational design Vol.3 No.3

First time, an exact solution for free vibration of the Levy-type rectangular laminated plate is developed considering the most efficient Zig-Zag theory (ZIGT) and third order theory (TOT). The plate is subjected to hard simply supported boundary condition (Levy-type) along x axis. Using the equilibrium equations and the plate constitutive relations, a set of 12 m first order differential homogenous equations are obtained, containing displacements and stress resultant as primary variables. The natural frequencies of a single-layer isotropic, multi-layer composites and sandwich plates are tabulated for three values of length-to-thickness ratio (S) and five set of boundary conditions and further assessed by comparing with existing literature and recently developed 3D EKM (extended Kantorovich method) solution. It is found that for the symmetric composite plate, TOT produces better results than ZIGT. For antisymmetric and sandwich plates, ZIGT predicts the frequency for different boundary conditions within 3% error with respect to 3D elasticity solution while TOT gives 10% error. But, ZIGT gives better predictions than the TOT concerning the displacement and stress variables.

Awareness regarding Safe Abortion among Adolescent Girls in Rural area of Mahottari district of Nepal

Singh, Jitendra Kumar,Sah, Poonam Kumari,Kushwaha, Shambhu Prasad,Bajgain, Bishnu Bahadur,Chaudhary, Sanjay Korean Society for Rural Medicine and Community He 2019 농촌의학·지역보건 Vol.44 No.2

목적 : 이 연구는 네팔의 마호타리 지방에 거주하고 있는 사춘기 소녀들의 낙태에 대한 인식 수준을 평가하기 위해 수행하였다. 방법 : 이 연구는 지역사회 기반 단면연구로서 2019년 1월부터 3월까지 네팔의 마호타리 지역의 농촌 마을 사춘기 소녀 412명 대상으로 실시하였다. 대상자는 10세에서 19세까지의 사춘기 소녀로서 다단계집락추출 방법으로 선정하였고, 사춘기 소녀의 낙태에 대한 인식 수준에 미치는 요인을 알기위해다변량로지스틱회귀을 시행하였다. 결과 : 조사 결과 사춘기 소녀의 45.6%가 안전한 낙태에 대해 높은 인식도를 가지고 있었다. 결혼한 청소년의 인식도는 미혼의 청소년보다 높았고(OR = 2.16, 95 % CI : 1.01-4.87), 중등교육 이상을 받은 청소년의 인식도가 높았다(OR = 2.21, 95 % CI : 1.13-3.04). 또한 월 소득이 10,000 ~ 20,000 루피(NRs)와 그 이상이 되는 경우 10,000 루피에 비해 각각 2.33 배(OR=2.33, 95 % CI : 1.07-3.55), 3.17 배(OR=3.17, 95 % CI : 2.19-8.94)더 높았다. 결론 : 이 연구를 통해 낙태에 대한 전반적인 지식 수준은 낮았다. 결혼상태, 교육수준, 가족수입과 같은 사회 경제적 요인이 낙태에 대한 인식수준과 관련이 있어, 이를 통해 원치 않는 임신, 낙태 및 그로 인한 합병증을 줄이기 위해 낙태에 대한 인식 수준을 높일 수 있도록 노력하여야 한다. This study aimed to assess the level of awareness on safe abortion among adolescent girls in rural area of Mahottari district of Nepal. A community based cross-sectional study was conducted in rural areas of Mahottari district of Southern Nepal between January and March 2019.A sample of 412 adolescent girls was selected using multi-stage cluster sampling. Multivariable logistic regression model was adapted to explore level of awareness among adolescent girls. This study found that 45.6% of adolescent girls had high awareness regarding safe abortion. The odds of awareness among the married adolescents was higher (AOR=2.16; 95% CI: 1.01-4.87) than unmarried adolescent whereas the odds of awareness among the adolescents who had education of secondary level and more had higher (AOR=2.21; 95%CI: 1.13-3.04) than those who had primary or lower secondary level of education. Similarly, the adolescents who had monthly family income of Nepalese Rupees (NRs.), 10,000-20,000 and more than NRs. 20,000 were respectively, 2.33 times (AOR = 2.33; 95% CI: 1.07-3.55) and 3.17 times (AOR = 3.17; 95% CI: 2.19-8.94) more likelihood to have high awareness regarding safe abortion than those their counterparts. The study showed that overall level of knowledge towards safe abortion was found low. Socio-demographic factors like marital status, level of education, and family income were the factors independently associated with level of awareness on safe abortion. Therefore, efforts should be exerted towards arising and improving the awareness of abortion care which may reduce unwanted pregnancy, abortion and other complications related to abortion.

Seroprevalence of Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infections among Blood Donors in India: A Retrospective Study (2016-2020)

( Ashok Kumar Sah ),( Poonam Kumari ),( Ganesh Singh Rawat ),( Geet Aggarwal Aseem Kumar Tiwari ) 대한간학회 2021 춘·추계 학술대회 (KASL) Vol.2021 No.1

Awareness regarding Safe Abortion among Adolescent Girls in Rural area of Mahottari district of Nepal

Jitendra Kumar Singh,Poonam Kumari Sah,Shambhu Prasad Kushwaha,Bishnu Bahadur Bajgain,Sanjay Chaudhary 한국농촌의학 지역보건학회 2019 농촌의학·지역보건 Vol.44 No.2

목적 : 이 연구는 네팔의 마호타리 지방에 거주하고 있는 사춘기 소녀들의 낙태에 대한 인식 수준을 평가하기 위해 수행하였다. 방법 : 이 연구는 지역사회 기반 단면연구로서 2019년 1월부터 3월까지 네팔의 마호타리 지역의 농촌 마을 사춘기 소녀 412명 대상으로 실시하였다. 대상자는 10세에서 19세까지의 사춘기 소녀로서 다단계집락추출 방법으로 선정하였고, 사춘기 소녀의 낙태에 대한 인식 수준에 미치는 요인을 알기위해다변량로지스틱회귀을 시행하였다. 결과 : 조사 결과 사춘기 소녀의 45.6%가 안전한 낙태에 대해 높은 인식도를 가지고 있었다. 결혼한 청소년의 인식도는 미혼의 청소년보다 높았고(OR = 2.16, 95 % CI : 1.01-4.87), 중등교육 이상을 받은 청소년의 인식도가 높았다(OR = 2.21, 95 % CI : 1.13-3.04). 또한 월 소득이 10,000 ~ 20,000 루피(NRs)와 그 이상이 되는 경우 10,000 루피에 비해 각각 2.33 배(OR=2.33, 95 % CI : 1.07-3.55), 3.17 배(OR=3.17, 95 % CI : 2.19-8.94)더 높았다. 결론 : 이 연구를 통해 낙태에 대한 전반적인 지식 수준은 낮았다. 결혼상태, 교육수준, 가족수입과 같은 사회 경제적 요인이 낙태에 대한 인식수준과 관련이 있어, 이를 통해 원치 않는 임신, 낙태 및 그로 인한 합병증을 줄이기 위해 낙태에 대한 인식 수준을 높일 수 있도록 노력하여야 한다. This study aimed to assess the level of awareness on safe abortion among adolescent girls in rural area of Mahottari district of Nepal. A community based cross-sectional study was conducted in rural areas of Mahottari district of Southern Nepal between January and March 2019.A sample of 412 adolescent girls was selected using multi-stage cluster sampling. Multivariable logistic regression model was adapted to explore level of awareness among adolescent girls. This study found that 45.6% of adolescent girls had high awareness regarding safe abortion. The odds of awareness among the married adolescents was higher (AOR=2.16; 95% CI: 1.01-4.87) than unmarried adolescent whereas the odds of awareness among the adolescents who had education of secondary level and more had higher (AOR=2.21; 95%CI: 1.13-3.04) than those who had primary or lower secondary level of education. Similarly, the adolescents who had monthly family income of Nepalese Rupees (NRs.), 10,000-20,000 and more than NRs. 20,000 were respectively, 2.33 times (AOR = 2.33; 95% CI: 1.07–3.55) and 3.17 times (AOR = 3.17; 95% CI: 2.19–8.94) more likelihood to have high awareness regarding safe abortion than those their counterparts. The study showed that overall level of knowledge towards safe abortion was found low. Socio-demographic factors like marital status, level of education, and family income were the factors independently associated with level of awareness on safe abortion. Therefore, efforts should be exerted towards arising and improving the awareness of abortion care which may reduce unwanted pregnancy, abortion and other complications related to abortion.

Two-level bilateral ultrasound-guided erector spinae plane block for kyphosis corrective surgery - A case report -

Sinha Chandni,Kumar Amarjeet,Kumar Ajeet,Kumari Poonam,Agrawal Prabhat,SK Arun 대한마취통증의학회 2022 Anesthesia and pain medicine Vol.17 No.3

Background: Ultrasound-guided erector spinae plane (ESP) block has been used to provide lumbar analgesia. The craniocaudal spread of local anesthetic in this block can be unpredictable in patients with kyphosis due to backward curvature of the spine, which might prevent longitudinal spread. Case: This is a case of a 33-year-old male (60 kg) diagnosed with type 3b kyphosis of the thoracolumbar region at the level of L1 who underwent extended pedicle subtraction osteotomy. ESP block was administered at two different levels, one at T12 (above the angle of the kyphosis L1) and another at L3 (below the angle of kyphosis L1), as the curvature of kyphosis can hinder the longitudinal spread of local anesthetic. Conclusions: Two-level ESP block results in better craniocaudal spread of local anesthetic in a patient undergoing kyphosis correction surgery.