Semivolatile Organic Compounds in Window Films from Lower Manhattan after the September 11th World Trade Center Attacks

The September 11th World Trade Center (WTC) terrorist attacks resulted in the large-scale release of contaminants that were deposited on the environment of New York City (NYC). Six weeks after the attacks, samples of an organic film on window surfaces were collected and analyzed for polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCN), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). Concentrations dropped by an order of magnitude within 1 km of the WTC and reached background concentrations by 3.5 km. Concentrations within 1 km of the WTC averaged 3280 ng/m2 for ΣPBDE, 900 ng/m2 for ΣPCB, 33 ng/m2 for ΣPCN, and 77100 ng/m2 for ΣPAH. Congener profiles of the sites nearest the WTC suggested a combination of combustion and evaporative sources of all compounds, whereas the background sites exhibited profiles consistent with evaporative sources. PBDE profiles showed enrichment in lower molecular weight congeners near the WTC, suggesting that these congeners were formed as a result of the combustion conditions. Homologue fractions of PCN combustion markers were ∼2−9 times greater at near WTC sites compared to background NYC. Gas-phase air concentrations were back-calculated from measured film concentrations using the film−air partition coefficient (K FA), and calculated air concentrations followed spatial trends observed in films.