New technique sheds light on post-disaster air pollution

The team used a combination of proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry (PTR-MS) and non-targeted analysis (NTA) in the wake of the fire, which occurred at a plastic recycling plant in Indiana in April 2023. During the following autumn, the researchers deployed their method in and around the half-mile evacuation zone that the fire triggered, testing for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) caused by the fire such as hydrogen cyanide and benzene.

In total, they identified 46 VOCs within and outside the evacuation zone, with average detection levels above local background levels. While all the VOCs detected were below the hazard thresholds set for single exposures, the researchers say it is unclear how the combination of the different VOCs may act together to adversely impact human health. The work is published in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology.

“The Environmental Protection Agency does extensive, long-term recovery work after disasters like this,” said researcher Natalie Johnson, from Texas A&M University’s Department of Environmental & Occupational Health. “We believe that our study proves this method produces accurate data very quickly, which could help officials determine the best evacuation zones following a disaster.”