Chemical Characteristics of Particulate Matter in Underground Shopping Malls
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22350583 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jae Young Lee (0000-0002-2164-1195), Tae Han Kim (0000-0003-3855-081X), Tae-Han Kim (0000-0002-6963-6483) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 235-245 |
| Publication date | 2025-06-30 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of People, Plants, and Environment (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2508-7673 • E-ISSN: 2508-7681 |
| Publisher | Korean Society for People, Plants, and Environment (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.11628/ksppe.2025.28.3.235 |
| OpenAlex | W4412130880 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 14 |
Background and objective: Underground shopping malls within multi-use facilities are subject to indoor air quality regulations. In these environments, particulate matter (PM) is both deposited and resuspended due to external influxes and pedestrian activity. Combined with various chemical species, this PM can potentially induce a range of adverse health effects. This study aims to investigate the chemical characteristics and potential human health hazards of PM in underground shopping malls, with a particular focus on the morphological and size-dependent chemical properties.Methods: Temporal variations in indoor air quality were assessed at the relatively large North Plaza within the study site. PM samples were collected and categorized into deposited and suspended particles. A chemical speciation analysis was performed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), with large-area analysis at 100x magnification. Additionally, three particles of different sizes were selected and analyzed in triplicate. The weight ratios of the detected chemical species were then calculated. Furthermore, a morphological analysis of the particles was conducted using SEM.Results: The maximum PM 10 and PM 2.5 concentrations at the study site were 83.5 μg/m3 and 66.2 μg/m3, respectively. Chemical speciation analysis of PM revealed that metallic species such as Fe, Al, Ti, and Zn were either uniquely detected or present in higher weight ratios in PM 10 and PM 2.5 within deposited dust compared to within suspended dust. The morphology of the PM resembled that of particles typically found in road traffic environments.Conclusion: PM collected from an underground shopping mall in Gangnam exhibited morphological characteristics typical of urban environments. Furthermore, deposited dust contained higher weight ratios of metallic chemical species associated with increased health risks compared to suspended dust. This difference was more pronounced in PM 2.5 than in PM 10
Air quality index · Meteorology · Mineralogy · Particulates · Physics · Scanning electron microscope · Air Quality and Health Impacts · Air Quality Monitoring and Forecasting · Atmospheric chemistry and aerosols · Chemistry · Environmental Science · Materials Science · Environmental Chemistry
| Highly cited | No |
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