Abstract The aim of this paper is to determine the level and distribution of the sixteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) listed by the US Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA) in smoke from poplar wood pellets and sawdust combustion and thermal decomposition, respectively. Namely, the growth of selected poplar plantations, wood cultivation and production in the north part of the Republic of Serbia, Vojvodina Province, considerably increased. However, mechanical wood processing creates a lot of sawdust, which causes an occupational and environmental risk and also poses a fire hazard. Furthermore, in order to protect the environment and provide additional energy sources, sawdust is commonly pelletized and further used as a fuel. Thus, the assessment of environmental impact of its use becomes an important issue. Therefore, the intention of the authors was to determine the level and profile of PAHs emitted by combustion and thermal decomposition under atmospheric conditions of poplar wood pellets and sawdust. The 16 US-EPA PAHs were analyzed by gas chromatograph with mass selective detector. The level of total US-EPA 16 PAHs formed during combustion of wood pellets was 4.7 mg kg−1, whereas during the sawdust combustion it was 3.8 mg kg−1, while the resulting total PAHs concentration during thermal degradation under atmospheric conditions of pellets and sawdust was 3.4 mg kg−1 and 3.7 mg kg−1, respectively. The most common PAHs present in smoke from the combustion and thermal decomposition under atmospheric conditions of poplar wood pellets were phenanthrene, fluorene and naphthalene, while from the sawdust were phenanthrene, naphthalene, acenaphthylene and fluorene, respectively. BaPeq value obtained during the combustion of wood pellets was 0.081 mg kg−1, whereas from the combustion of sawdust it was 0.047 mg kg−1, while the resulting BaPeq value during the thermal degradation under atmospheric conditions of pellets and sawdust was 0.057 mg kg−1 and 0.049 mg kg−1, respectively. Biomass densification process did not affect PAHs emission neither during the combustion process nor the thermal decomposition process. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first study which considers the level and profile of PAHs found in smoke from the combustion and thermal decomposition of poplar clone I-214 (P. x euramericana cl. I-214) cultivated in the Republic of Serbia.

中文翻译：

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杨木颗粒和锯末燃烧和热分解烟气中的多环芳烃分布

摘要 本文旨在确定美国环境保护署 (US-EPA) 列出的 16 种多环芳烃 (PAHs) 在杨木颗粒和木屑燃烧和热分解产生的烟雾中的含量和分布。也就是说，塞尔维亚共和国北部伏伊伏丁那省的选定杨树种植园、木材种植和产量大幅增加。然而，机械木材加工会产生大量锯末，这会导致职业和环境风险，并造成火灾隐患。此外，为了保护环境并提供额外的能源，锯末通常被制成颗粒并进一步用作燃料。因此，评估其使用对环境的影响就成为一个重要的问题。所以，作者的目的是确定杨木颗粒和锯末在大气条件下燃烧和热分解所排放的 PAH 的水平和分布。16 种 US-EPA 多环芳烃通过配备质量选择检测器的气相色谱仪进行分析。木屑颗粒燃烧过程中形成的 US-EPA 16 PAHs 总量为 4.7 mg kg-1，而在木屑燃烧过程中为 3.8 mg kg-1，而颗粒在大气条件下热降解过程中产生的总 PAHs 浓度和锯末分别为 3.4 mg kg-1 和 3.7 mg kg-1。杨木颗粒在大气条件下燃烧和热分解产生的烟雾中最常见的多环芳烃是菲、芴和萘，而来自锯末的多环芳烃是菲、萘、苊和芴，分别。木屑颗粒燃烧过程中获得的 BaPeq 值为 0.081 mg kg-1，而木屑燃烧过程中获得的 BaPeq 值为 0.047 mg kg-1，而颗粒和木屑在大气条件下热降解过程中得到的 BaPeq 值为 0.057 mg kg -1 和 0.049 mg kg-1，分别。生物质致密化过程在燃烧过程和热分解过程中均不影响 PAHs 的排放。据我们所知，这是第一项研究在共和国种植的杨树克隆 I-214 (P. x euramericana cl. I-214) 燃烧和热分解产生的烟雾中发现的多环芳烃水平和分布的研究塞尔维亚。而在大气条件下，球团和锯末在热降解过程中得到的 BaPeq 值分别为 0.057 mg kg-1 和 0.049 mg kg-1。生物质致密化过程在燃烧过程和热分解过程中均不影响 PAHs 的排放。据我们所知，这是第一项研究在共和国种植的杨树克隆 I-214 (P. x euramericana cl. I-214) 燃烧和热分解产生的烟雾中发现的多环芳烃水平和分布的研究塞尔维亚。而在大气条件下，球团和锯末在热降解过程中得到的 BaPeq 值分别为 0.057 mg kg-1 和 0.049 mg kg-1。生物质致密化过程在燃烧过程和热分解过程中均不影响 PAHs 的排放。据我们所知，这是第一项研究在共和国种植的杨树克隆 I-214（P. x euramericana cl. I-214）燃烧和热分解产生的烟雾中发现的多环芳烃的水平和特征塞尔维亚。