Heavy metals bounded to particulate matter in the residential and industrial sites of Islamabad, Pakistan: Implications for non-cancer and cancer risks

Abstract This study investigated the levels of particulate matter (PM10) and bounded heavy metals in the industrial and residential sites of Islamabad, Pakistan. The PM10 samples were collected from the industrial and residential sites of Kahuta Triangle (KT), I-9, and I-10 within the Islamabad using Air Quality Monitoring Station (AQMS, Horiba, Ltd). The mean PM 10 values of industrial and residential sites had surpassed the world health organization (WHO) guideline values (50 μ g/m3). The PM10 were assayed for heavy metals using the atomic absorption spectrophotometry (Perkin Elmer, AAS-PEA-700). Heavy metals including copper (Cu), cadmium (Cd), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni) and zinc (Zn) were observed within the WHO guidelines. However, only the lead (Pb) was observed higher than two folds of the WHO limits in both industrial and residential sites of the I-10, Islamabad. Heavy metals concentration bounded to PM 10 were assessed for the potential risk of children and adults using the average daily doses (ADD), non-cancer or hazard quotient (HQ), hazard index (HI) and cancer risk (CR) for the exposure pathways of ingestion, inhalation, and dermal contact. Results revealed that children’s intake was higher than adults that mainly occurred through the ingestion pathway. The HI and CR values due to exposure of heavy metals in industrial and residential sites were observed within the threshold limits the United States of America environmental protection agency