Actual commuter exposure to methyl-tertiary butyl ether, benzene and toluene while traveling in Korean urban areas

This study evaluated in-car and in-bus exposures to methyl-tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), benzene, and toluene on actual commuting routes, not hypothetical routes as used in many previous in-vehicle exposure studies of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). It focuses on four potentially influencing factors (transportation mode, passenger-car type, time of day, and season). A total of 40 passenger car commuters and 20 public bus commuters were recruited. The same commuters participated in both the summer and winter studies. The transportation mode, passenger-car type and commute season were all found to affect the in-vehicle levels of the target VOCs. Conversely, the commute time of day had little effect on the in-car and in-bus levels of the target compounds. The present study also confirmed that under Korean commuting conditions, passenger car and public bus interiors are important microenvironments for exposure to MTBE, benzene and toluene. This is supported by a previous finding that both in-car and in-bus air levels of the target VOCs tend to be much higher than ambient air levels of the compounds. Meanwhile, some spurious gasoline sold during the experimental periods appears to have elevated the in-car and in-bus exposures to toluene compared with those reported by some previous studies conducted in the same study area.