Laurent Y. Alleman

IMT Nord Europe

Inhalation of welding fumes (WF) containing high levels of transition metals (Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni…) is associated with numerous health effects including oxidative stress. However, the measurements of the...

Global attention is drawn to the significant issue of indoor pollution, given its direct negative impact on human health and wellness. Typically, individuals can nowadays spend 80% or more of their time in enclosed built locations where they can be prone to a multitude of harmful toxic chemicals distributed in particulate and gas phases. Therefore,...

Welding fumes (WF) are a complex mixture of ultrafine polymetallic particles, which can deposit in all regions of the respiratory tract. They contain high levels of transition metals (Cr, Cu, Mn …) known to catalyze the production of reactive oxygen species which are related to numerous adverse health effects. In industrial hygiene, collected WF ar...

The article can be freely downloaded before 14th July from: https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1h8WH4zzcnxpQ

Ferroptosis, an iron-dependent regulated cell death triggered by high lipid peroxide levels, has been implicated in several neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease (PD). Brain regions such as the striatum are highly rich in both peroxidation susceptible PUFAs and iron, which accumulate at a greater rate than age in PD. The exact m...

Indoor environmental exposure to pesticides has become one of the major concerns that might adversely affect human health and development. People spend most of their lifetime in enclosed indoor environments where they might inhale harmful toxic chemicals, such as pesticides, dispersed either in particulate or in a gas phase. In this study, an asses...

This work explores the seasonal variations of the factor of conversion of organic carbon to organic matter (Foc-om) in a rural site in Northern France. This was estimated using a published method linking the remaining mass (RM) fraction of the PM2.5 to the organic carbon (OC). Linear correlations with R2 >0.6 were found, with seasonal Foc-om increa...

The Monitor for Aerosols and Gases in Ambient air (MARGA) is an on-line gas and aerosol sampling and analysis system based on ion chromatography (IC) that allows the monitoring at 1-hour time resolution of major water-soluble atmospheric species in the gas phase (NH3, HCl, HONO, HNO3, SO2) and the particle phase (NH4⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Cl⁻, NO3...

In this study the aerosol acidity was calculated using three different approaches in order to assess the temporal variation of aerosol pH in a rural site of Northern France. Aerosol acidity was estimated using three approaches: (i) the ion balance (IB), (ii) the ISORROPIA II model and (iii) a combination of the ISORROPIA ouput and the NH4+/NH3 equi...

The Isotrace CNRS workgroup in collaboration with National Research Council of Canada has characterized a number of trace element mass fractions and isotope ratios currently not certified in AQUA-1 natural drinking water reference material (NRC Canada). This survey further expands the use of this material as a tool for environmental quality control...

Recent evidence has supported welding fume (WF)-derived ultrafine particles (UFP) could be the driving force of their adverse health effects. However, UFP have not yet been extensively studied and are currently not included in present air quality standards/guidelines. Here, attention was focused on the underlying genetic and epigenetic mechanisms b...

A method coupling automated thermal desorption (ATD) with in-tube derivatization and solid phase micro-extraction (SPME), with on-injector derivatization gas chromatography - tandem mass spectrometry (GC/MSMS) was developed and used for the simultaneous quantification of 100 semivolatile (SVOCs) pollutants (50 pesticides, 16 PAHs, 22 PCBs, 7 phthal...

Twenty-five biogenic and anthropogenic secondary organic aerosol (SOA) markers have been measured over a one-year period in both gaseous and PM10 phases in the Paris region (France). Seasonal and chemical patterns were similar to those previously observed in Europe, but significantly different from the ones observed in America and Asia due to dissi...

The French West Indies are periodically affected by North African dust episodes (NADE) resulting in PM10 concentrations exceeding air quality standards. The aim of the present study was to decipher the PM10 chemical profile during NADE over Guadeloupe. PM10 samples were collected daily at a rural site and an urban site during five episodes between...

The CARA program has been running since 2008 by the French reference laboratory for air quality monitoring (LCSQA) and the regional monitoring networks, to gain better knowledge—at a national level—on particulate matter (PM) chemistry and its diverse origins in urban environments. It results in strong collaborations with international-level academi...

Industrial metalworking facilities emit a variety of air toxics including volatile organic compounds, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heavy metals. In order to investigate these emissions, a 1-month multi-instrument field campaign was undertaken at an industrial site in Grande-Synthe, Dunkirk (France), in May and June 2012. One of the m...

The CARA program has been developed since 2008 by the French reference laboratory for air quality monitoring (LCSQA) and the regional monitoring networks to gain a better knowledge at the national level on the particulate matter (PM) chemistry and its diverse origins in urban environments. It results of strong collaborations with international-leve...

To evaluate the chemical behavior and the health impact of welding fumes (WF), a complex and heterogeneous mixture of particulate metal oxides, two certified reference materials (CRMs) were tested: mild steel WF (MSWF-1) and stainless steel WF (SSWF-1). We determined their total chemical composition, their solubility, and their oxidative potential...

Nowadays ambient particulate matter (PM) levels still regularly exceed the guideline values established by World Health Organization in most urban areas. Numerous experimental studies have already demonstrated the airway toxicity of the fine fraction of PM (FP), mainly triggered by oxidative stress-induced airway inflammation. However, only few stu...

Indoor and outdoor ultrafine, accumulation mode, and coarse fractions collected at two preschools (S1 and S2) in Hanoi capital, Vietnam were characterized in terms of mass-size distribution and elemental composition to identify major emission sources. The sampling campaigns were performed simultaneously indoors and outdoors over four consecutive we...

Air pollution and particulate matter (PM) are classified as carcinogenic to humans. Pollutants evidence for public health concern include coarse (PM10) and fine (PM2.5) particles. However, ultrafine particles (PM0.1) are assumed to be more toxic than larger particles, but data are still needed to better understand their mechanism of action. In this...

Les résultats présentés ici confirment le rôle prépondérant joué par les particules naturelles (poussières sahariennes, mais également sels de mer) dans la survenue des dépassements de seuil journalier pour les PM10 en Martinique. Par ailleurs, des mesures automatiques de carbone suie ainsi que l’utilisation de la Positive Matrix Factorization pou...

In this study, the performance of two types of source apportionment models was evaluated by assessing the results provided by 40 different groups in the framework of an intercomparison organised by FAIRMODE WG3 (Forum for air quality modelling in Europe, Working Group 3). The evaluation was based on two performance indicators: z-scores and the root...

An original source apportionment study was conducted on atmospheric particles (PM10)collected in Metz, one of the largest cities of Eastern France. A Positive matrix factorization (PMF)analysis was applied to a sampling filter-based chemical dataset obtained for the April 2015 toJanuary 2017 period. Nine factors were clearly identified, showing mai...

In order to present the whole dataset build during the SOURCES project, an interactive website was set up. The reader may refer to it to investigate the entire profile time serie and chemical composition as well as their associated uncertainty and the similarity assessment. website: http://pmsources.u-ga.fr

Receptor-oriented models, including positive matrix factorization (PMF) analyses, are now commonly used to elaborate and/or evaluate action plans to improve air quality. In this context, the SOURCES project has been set-up to gather and investigate in a harmonized way 15 datasets of chemical compounds from PM10 collected for PMF studies during a fi...

The knowledge of the underlying mechanisms by which particulate matter (PM) exerts its health effects is still incomplete since it may trigger various symptoms as some persons may be more susceptible than others. Detailed studies realized in more relevant in vitro models are highly needed. Healthy normal human bronchial epithelial (NHBE), asthma-di...

Exposure to particulate matter (PM) is leading to various respiratory health outcomes. Compared to coarse and fine particles, less is known about the effects of chronic exposure to ultrafine particles, despite their higher number and reactivity. In the present study, we performed a time-course experiment in mice to better analyze the lung impact of...

In a context where a significant fraction of the population lives near industrial areas, the main objectives of this study are to provide (a) new data on PM2.5 chemical compositions, heavy-metal concentrations and trace gases released by metalworking activities and (b) new information on the near-field evolution (up to about a thousand meters) of s...

Atmospheric pollution is a striking regional issue for public health and ecosystems and has major global impacts on climate. Particulate matter (PM) can be of primary or secondary origin and its sources, both natural and anthropogenic, are very heterogeneous in space and time. Hence, many efforts have been made worldwide to get a better knowledge o...

In order to clarify whether the mitochondrial dysfunction is closely related to the cell homeostasis maintenance after particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure, oxidative, inflammatory, apoptotic and mitochondrial endpoints were carefully studied in human bronchial epithelial BEAS-2B, normal human bronchial epithelial (NHBE) and chronic obstructive pulm...

Trajectory-based statistical models (TMs) are widely used to locate source areas responsible for atmospheric pollution at receptor sites. In order to study the influence of long, medium and short-range back-trajectories (BTs) on geographical sources location, an original approach was applied to daily PM10 concentrations measured for 5 years (2009–2...

PM10 source apportionment was performed by positive matrix factorization (PMF) using specific primary and secondary organic molecular markers on samples collected over a one year period (2013) at an urban station in Grenoble (France). The results provided a 9-factor optimum solution, including sources rarely apportioned in the literature, such as t...

For many years, the interaction between dust particles and water molecules has been a subject of interest for the atmospheric sciences community. However, the influence of particles size on the hygroscopicity of mineral particles is poorly evaluated. In the current study, Diffused Reflectance Infrared Fourier Transform Spectroscopy (DRIFTS) is used...

Le présent rapport synthétise les principaux travaux 2017 du programme CARA du dispositif national de surveillance de la qualité de l’air. Fonctionnant en étroite collaboration avec les AASQA volontaires et des laboratoires universitaires, ce programme permet notamment de documenter la nature et les origines des épisodes de pollution particulaire d...

Background Air pollution is a recognized aggravating factor for pulmonary diseases and has notably deleterious effects on asthma, bronchitis and pneumonia. Recent studies suggest that air pollution may also cause adverse effects in the gastrointestinal tract. Accumulating experimental evidence shows that immune responses in the pulmonary and intest...

Even though clinical, epidemiological and toxicological studies have progressively provided a better knowledge of the underlying mechanisms by which air pollution-derived particulate matter (PM) exerts its harmful health effects, further in vitro studies on relevant cell systems are still needed. Hence, aiming of getting closer to the human in vivo...

According to the literature, tiny amounts of transition metals in airborne fine particles (PM2.5) may induce proinflammatory cell response through reactive oxygen species production. The solubility of particle-bound metals in physiological fluids, i.e. the metal bioaccessibility is driven by factors such as the solution chemical composition, the co...

A method coupling automated thermal desorption and gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry was developed and used for the quantification of 16 PAHs (acenaphthene, anthracene, benzo[a]anthracene, benzo[a]pyrene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[e]pyrene, benzo[g,h,i]perylene, benzo[k]fluoranthene, chrysene, dibenzo[a,h]anthracene, fluoranthene, fluor...

Fine (< 2.5 μm), submicron (< 1 μm) and ultrafine (< 100 nm) atmospheric particles were collected during a 3-weeks campaign in a heavily industrialized area and physically and chemically characterized in order to determine their main sources. As a basis of comparison, the present one-year average EU limit value (25 μg·m− 3) and the WHO recommendati...

Constraining the continental silicon cycle is a key requirement in attempts to understand both nutrient fluxes to the ocean and linkages between silicon and carbon cycling over different timescales. Silicon isotope data of dissolved silica (δ30SiDSi) are presented here from Lake Baikal and its catchment in central Siberia. As well as being the worl...

Fine (< 2.5 μm), submicron (< 1 μm) and ultrafine (< 100 nm) atmospheric particles were collected during a 3-weeks campaign in a heavily industrialized area and physically and chemically characterized in order to determine their main sources. As a basis of comparison, the present one-year average EU limit value (25 μg.m− 3) and the WHO recommendati...

While the knowledge of the underlying mechanisms by which air pollution-derived particulate matter (PM) exerts its harmful health effects is still incomplete, detailed in vitro studies are highly needed. With the aim of getting closer to the human in vivo conditions and better integrating a number of factors related to pre-existing chronic pulmonar...

Seasonal and spatial variability of PM composition and of the concentrations of selected PM source tracers in different French urban environments are investigated here. A special focus is granted here to the seasonality of the organic fraction between the winter and summer periods.

Indoor and outdoor airborne particles, CO, CO2 levels and comfort parameters were monitored at two naturally ventilated elementary schools (S1 and S2). This paper studies the variation of ventilation rate during lectures, recreations, lunchtime and after class. Additionally, mass balance equations were used to estimate the particle deposition rates...

This review synthesizes the existing knowledge on the characteristics of PM2.5 at sites under the direct influence of industrial emissions, with a specific focus on their morphology, size distributions and chemical composition. Results from online and off-line analytical techniques indicate a high temporal and spatial variability of mass size distr...

The lung bioaccessibility, i.e., the solubility in alveolar lung fluid of metals in particulate matter, has been recognized as an important parameter for health risk assessment, associated with the inhalation of airborne particles. The purpose of this study is to use an in vitro method to estimate the pulmonary bioaccessibility of toxic metals in d...

The lung bioaccessibility, i.e. the solubility in alveolar lung fluid of metals in particulate matter has been recognized as an important parameter for health risk assessment, associated with the inhalation of airborne particles. The purpose of this study is to use an in-vitro method to estimate the pulmonary bioaccessibility of toxic metals in dif...

The aim of the NANO-INDUS project was to study the evolution of the physico-chemical properties of industrial fine particles over a short-range distance, after their release from the stacks. First, measurements were performed directly at the stacks of a plant manufacturing iron-manganese alloy near Dunkirk Port, France. Separately, an intensive fie...

The sources of ambient particulate matter (PM10) collected over a one year period at an urban background site in Lens (France) were determined with Positive Matrix Factorization (US EPA PMF v3.0). Components measured and used in the PMF include the conventional species (soluble ionic species, trace elements, levoglucosan, elemental carbon (EC) and...

Along with some research networking programmes, the European Directive 2008/50/CE requires chemical speciation of fine aerosol (PM2.5), including elemental (EC) and organic carbon (OC), at a few rural sites in European countries. Meanwhile, the thermal-optical technique is considered by the European and US networking agencies and normalisation bodi...

In this work, the source of ambient particulate matter (PM10) collected over a one year period at an urban background site in Lens (France) were determined and investigated using a~Positive Matrix Factorization receptor model (US EPA PMF v3.0). In addition, a Potential Source Contribution Function (PSCF) was performed by means of the Hysplit v4.9 m...

Along with some research networking programs, the European Directive 2008/50/CE requires chemical speciation of fine aerosol (PM2.5), including elemental (EC) and organic carbon (OC), at a few rural sites in European countries. Meanwhile, the thermal-optical technique is considered by the European and US networking agencies and normalization bodies...

Industrial areas can be a significant source of particulate pollution and companies are therefore required to measure the particle concentration emitted from stacks. However, the physico-chemical properties of the particles leaving an industrial area are often poorly characterized and there is little information on the evolution of the plume betwee...

This paper presents the results of an intercomparison exercise for the determination of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), nickel (Ni) and lead (Pb) in PM 10 , which are regulated by the European Directives for ambient air quality. Thirteen laboratories participated, generally using the European reference methods of measurement which consist of a microwav...

The research presented here was initiated to improve the current knowledge on easily released metals from atmospheric particles. The objectives of this paper were to develop an in vitro method to estimate lung bioaccessibility and to provide quantitative data on metals bioaccessibility. A large set of metals has been investigated (Ba, Cd, Ce, Co, C...

School is the most important indoor environment for children besides their home. Indoor air quality in school is a critical parameter that needs to be considered for children's health. Atmospheric measurements provide concentrations of pollutants which are used for risk assessments. However, those data are limited to study complex interactions betw...

The elemental composition data of ambient aerosols collected upon selected wind sectors in the highly industrialised harbour of Dunkirk (France) were interpreted using pollution roses, elemental ratios, Enrichment Factors (EF), Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) receptor model. The objective was to identify t...

A comprehensive field intercomparison at four different types of European sites (two rural, one urban and one industrial) comparing three different collectors (wet only, bulk and Bergerhoff samplers) was conducted in the framework of the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) to create an European standard for the deposition of the four eleme...

Determination of trace contents of metals and metalloids, monitored in airborne particles for their adverse health and environmental impact or to discriminate pollutant particulate emission sources, requires very sensitive analytical methods. Dynamic reaction cell inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (DRC-ICP-MS) has been applied to measure...

Les éléments traces, principalement sous forme particulaire dans l’air ambiant sont à des teneurs extrêmement faibles, nécessitant le développement de techniques de collectes et d’analyses particulièrement sensibles. Ces composés, à la fois excellent traceurs de sources mais également potentiellement toxiques pour l’environnement et la santé humain...

1. In order to evaluate limitation of different phytoplankton groups by inorganic nutrients, multiple nutrient enrichment bioassays using the addition of iron (Fe) and the combined addition of nitrogen and phosphorus (NP) were carried out in the north and the south of Lake Tanganyika during the rainy and dry seasons in 2003 and 2004. 2. Nutrient ad...

Biogenic productivity of Lake Tanganyika is highly dependent on seasonal upwellings of cold, oxygendepleted, nutrient-rich deep waters. We investigated the shell of freshwater bivalve Pleiodon spekii as a geochemical archive of these periodic hydrological changes tuned by the monsoon regime. The results of a three-year-long limnological and geochem...

Biogenic productivity of Lake Tanganyika is highly dependent on seasonal upwellings of anoxic deep waters. We investigated the shell of freshwater bivalve Pleiodon spekii as a geochemical archive of these periodic hydrological changes tuned by the monsoon regime. The results of a 2-years-long geochemical survey of the coastal waters performed on th...

We report MC-ICP-MS Si-isotopic measurements (δ 29 Si recalculated as δ 30 Si) on micro-subsamples (at 500 μm scale) from several major rock types of the ∼3.8-Ga-old Isua Greenstone Belt (IGB, southern West Greenland) and surrounding Eoarchaean terrains. With a large overall range of variations (−2.80‰ < δ 30 Si < + 0.68‰), they demonstrate strong...

Here we present the first dataset to couple oxygen and silicon isotopes determined on diatom silica from a lake sedimentary profile. Samples have been extracted from a sediment core spanning most of the Holocene ( ∼ 9500 years) collected in the south- ern basin of Lake Baikal, the oldest and deepest freshwater lake in the world. After a sequence of...

The CLIMLAKE project involved an integrated approach combining hydrodynamics, nutrient distribution, plankton dynamics, geochemical signals and paleoecology for improving the understanding of Lake Tanganyika variability and sensitivity to climate change. The project started in 2001 and included a 3-year survey of the lake over the period 2002-2004,...

Silicon isotopic measurements in Lake Tanganyika were performed using multiple-collec-tor inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) in dry plasma condition. Isotopic signa-tures are reported for dissolved ortho-silicic acid [Si(OH) 4 ] collected during a 1-year-long surface waters survey in the southern basin along with several of th...

We analyzed d 29 Si of dissolved silicate for eight water column profiles across the Southern Ocean (south of Australia in spring 2001) from the Seasonal Ice Zone (SIZ) north to the Subantarctic Zone (SAZ), including the first isotopic compositions measured for Si-depleted seawaters. All profiles display mixed layer enrichments in heavy Si isotopes...

In an effort to better understand vivianite formation processes, four Lake Baikal sediment cores spanning two to four interglacial stages in the northern, central and southern basins and under various biogeochemical environments are scrutinized. The vivianite-rich layers were detected by anomalous P-enrichments in bulk geochemistry and visually by...

The isotopic composition of silicic acid and biogenic Si along the WOCE SR3 transect (142-144 ̊E; spring 2001) was analysed by MC-ICP-MS, following Cardinal et al. (2003). We sampled the Subantarctic Zone (SAZ), the Subantarctic Front (SAF), the Polar Front Zone (PFZ), the Interpolar Front Zone (IPFZ), the southern Antarctic Zone (AZ-S) and the Sea...