Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) can adversely affect human and plant health by generating secondary pollutants such as ozone and fine particulate matter, through photochemical reactions, necessitating systematic management. This study investigated the distribution characteristics of gaseous VOCs in ambient air, with a focus on interpreting data from a photochemical pollution perspective. This paper analyzed the presence and concentration distribution of VOCs in industrial areas, identifying toluene, m-xylene, p-xylene, and n-octane as the most frequently detected components. Particularly, toluene was found to significantly contribute to the formation of ozone and fine particulate matter, highlighting the need for stricter regulation of this compound. Although n-octane and styrene were present in relatively low concentrations overall, their significant contributions to ozone generation and secondary organic aerosol formation, respectively, emphasize their importance in air pollution management.

This study evaluated the importance of assessing personal exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by monitoring indoor, outdoor, and personal VOC levels in 15 Seoul residents over a 3-month period using passive samplers. Results indicated that limonene had the highest concentrations across indoor, outdoor, and personal samples, with this compound primarily originating from household cleaners and air fresheners. Other VOCs, such as 2-butanone and toluene, also varied by location. Health risk assessments showed that most VOCs had a Hazard Index (HI) below 1, while the HI of individual exposures were relatively higher. Notably, cancer risk assessments for chloroform and ethylbenzene exceeded permissible levels in some scenarios, suggesting potential cancer risks. This underscores the importance of diverse microenvironment monitoring for accurate health risk evaluations, as relying solely on indoor and outdoor levels can underestimate actual exposure risks. This study highlights the need for future research to monitor VOC levels in various microenvironments, in addition to the necessity of investigating personal activity patterns in depth to accurately assess personal exposure levels. Such an approach is crucial for precise health risk assessments, and it provides valuable foundational data for evaluating personal VOC exposures.

This study analyzed the effects of different nitrogen sources in substrate composition on the growth of Pleurotus ostreatus, as well as the subsequent changes in flavor and antioxidant activity. The T2, composed of poplar sawdust, beet pulp, cotton seed dregs, and cotton seed coat in a ratio of 40:20:20:20, exhibited the highest yield at 156.6 g. The total polyphenol content and ABTS and DPPH radical scavenging activities were 8.25 mg GAE/g, 70%, and 49%, respectively, showing higher radical scavenging activity compared to the Control and T1. Additionally, varying nitrogen content resulted in distinct aroma patterns and is presumed to influence taste profiles such as sourness, umami, and saltiness.

Considering the characteristics of aldehydes among volatile organic compounds, a combined process was established by linking an absorbent and a photocatalytic reactor. Experiments to find the optimal operating conditions of the combined process showed that as the amount of photocatalyst coating increases, the wavelength of the ultraviolet lamp used becomes shorter, the photodegradation rate becomes faster, and the removal efficiency increases. It was also demonstrated that by controlling the relative humidity during the connection process of the combined process, the re-evaporation phenomenon at the front end (absorption area) of the hybrid process can be improved and the removal efficiency at the back end (photocatalytic reaction area) can be significantly enhanced. This confirmed the need for a combined process that complements the advantages and disadvantages of each process.

Mushrooms have a unique taste and aroma, so in the processing of mushroom products with other ingredients, a separate pre-processing step is often taken to eliminate the mushroom aroma. In this study, we analyzed the changes in the concentration of volatile compounds according to drying conditions to promote the activation of processing using the fruiting bodies of yellow oyster mushrooms(Pleurotus citrinopileatus) and pink oyster mushrooms(P. djamor). The caps and stipes of yellow oyster and pink oyster mushrooms were separated and freeze-dried at -70oC for 120 hours. Subsequently, they were hot air-dried at temperatures of 40, 50, 60, and 70oC for 24, 24, 16, and 12 hours, respectively. The dried samples were pulverized and quantitatively analyzed by SPME-GC-MS. In the case of yellow oyster mushrooms, the concentration of t-2-nonenal in caps and stipes during freeze-drying was 164.43 g/g d.w. and 174.80 g/g d.w., respectively, whereas during hot air-drying, it significantly decreased to 0.35~3.41 g/g d.w. and 0.98~59.88 g/g d.w. In a similar manner, for pink oyster mushrooms, the concentration of 1-octen-3-ol during freeze-drying in caps and stipes was 31.05 g/g d.w. and 176.17 g/g d.w., respectively, whereas during hot air-drying, it significantly decreased to 1.59~9.66 g/g d.w. and 1.96~15.77 g/g d.w. Furthermore, most volatile compounds showed a tendency to decrease in concentration as the temperature during hot air-drying increased.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are a paramount factor in air pollution of the environment. VOCs are vastly present in the wastewater discharged by the pharmaceutical industries. As it is evaporative in nature, it enters the environment spontaneously and causes air pollution, global warming, acid rain and climate change. VOCs must be treated before discharging or any other aerobic methods using an efficient catalyst. As the catalytic oxidation in the liquid phase is facile compared to the gas phase, this study investigated on catalytic liquid-phase oxidation of VOCs in model and real pharmaceutical wastewater. The model compounds of toluene-, ethylbenzene- and chlorobenzene-contaminated waters were treated separately along with the VOCs present in real pharmaceutical wastewater using a tungsten-based carbon catalyst. The tungsten was impregnated on the low-cost activated carbon matrix as it has good selectivity and catalytic property toward VOCs for facile catalytic operations. The metal catalysts were characterised by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction studies, and scanning electron microscopy with elemental and mapping analysis. The treatability was monitored by total organic carbon, ultra-violet spectroscopy and high-pressure liquid chromatography analysis. The tungsten-impregnated activated carbon matrix (WACM) has a catalytic efficiency toward toluene by 85.45 ± 1.78%, ethylbenzene by 93.9 ± 1.16%, chlorobenzene by 85.9 ± 2.26% and pharmaceutical VOCs by 85.05 ± 1.73% in 20 treatment cycles. The results showed that WACM worked efficiently in VOCs treatment, preventing the environment from air pollution. Furthermore, liquid-phase oxidation could easily be implementable on an industrial scale.

We used the measurement data derived from a proton transfer reaction time-offlight mass spectrometry (PTR-ToF-MS) to ascertain the source profile of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from 4 major industrial classifications which showed the highest emissions from a total of 26 industrial classifications of A industrial complex. Methanol (MOH) was indicated as the highest VOC in the industrial classification of fabricated metal manufacture, and it was followed by dichloromethane (DM), ethanol (EN) and acetaldehyde (AAE). In the industrial classification of printing and recording media, the emission of ethylacetate (EA) and toluene (TOL) were the highest, and were followed by acetone (ACT), ethanol (EN) and acetic acid (AA). TOL, MOH, 2-butanol (MEK) and AAE were measured at high concentrations in the classification of rubber and plastic manufacture. In the classification of sewage, wastewater and manure treatment, TOL was the highest, and it was followed by MOH, H2S, and ethylbenzene (EBZ). In future studies, the source profiles for various industrial classifications which can provide scientific evidence must be completed, and then specified mitigation plans of VOCs for each industrial classification should be established.

Chrysanthemum boreal, C. indicum, and C. indicum var. albescens are well-known wild Chrysanthemum species used for traditional medicine in Korea. In this study, volatile compounds from three wild Chrysanthemums were identified according to four different flowering stages and analyzed using HS-SPME-GC-MS to determine the temporal variation of the volatiles. As a result, 132, 151, and 142 peaks were identified from C. boreale, C. indicum, and C. indicum var. albescens, respectively. Furthermore, 70 out of 132 peaks were identified in C. boreale with a matching ratio of >90% from library search. In addition, 85/151 and 76/142 peaks were identified from C. indicum and C. indicum var. albescens. Forty-nine volatile compounds were found commonly in all three wild Chrysanthemums through all four different flowering stages. However, six, seven, and five unique compounds were detected only in C. boreale, C. indicum, and C. indicum var. albescens, respectively. One hundred volatile compounds were selected for multivariate analysis considering volatile compounds overlapped with each other. The one-way ANOVA (p < 0.05) detected significant differences from 77 out of 100 volatile compounds. In addition, PLS-DA showed the different profiles of volatile compounds according to four different flowering stages in each wild Chrysanthemum. PC1 of each Chrysanthemum accounted for 45.8 56.9, and 11.9% in C. boreale, C. indicum, and C. indicum var. albescens, respectively. PC1 of C. boreale and C. indicum clearly separated the BF stage and the other three stages. Conversely, PC1 of C . indicum var. albescens showed a difference in the composition of volatile compounds between the BF/BO and HO/FO stages. In addition, the different profiles of volatile compounds could be visualized using a heatmap from three wild Chrysanthemums according to four different flowering stages. This study will help improve particular volatile compounds in three wild Chrysanthemums both in quality and quantity.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in plants are various organic compounds with small molecular weight and high vapor pressure. The metabolomics approach was recently introduced to analyze VOCs involved in biological processes, such as abiotic and biotic stresses, spatial and temporal distribution, and genotypic differences. In addition, this approach is widely used in combination with identification of VOCs analysis and statistical analysis using multivariate analysis, such as principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), etc. First, in this review, the current condition of the metabolomics approach to analyze VOCs synthesized in plants using head space-solid phase microextraction coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS) is discussed. In addition, metabolomics approach, such as extraction and analysis of VOCs using HS-SPME-GC-MS, conversion, and processing of mass spectral (MS) data, a database for VOCs identification, useful statistical methods, and statistical tools and applications, are explained. Finally, multi-omics in combination with other omics techniques, such as genomics, transcriptomics, etc. are suggested as prospects of a metabolomics approach for VOC analysis in floricultural plants using HS-SPMEGC- MS. Therefore, the metabolomics approach of HS-SPMEGC- MS will facilitate our understanding of VOCs synthesized in plants. Furthermore, the multi-omics approach will help understand gene functions involved in the biosynthesis of VOCs and help develop new development cultivars with nicer floral scents by contributing to the development of the floricultural industry.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the volatile flavor compounds of Ligularia stenocephala and Ligularia fischeri, edible wild plants. The volatile flavor compounds were isolated by the simultaneous distillation extraction method and analyzed by GC-MSD (gas chromatography-mass selective detector). Forty-eight volatile flavor compounds were identified in the extracts from L. stenocephala and the major compounds were sabinene, cis-ocimene, trans-caryophyllene, and β-elemene. Fifty-one volatile flavor compounds were identified in the extracts from L. fischeri and the major compounds were α-pinene, germacrene-D, transcaryophyllene, endo-1-bourbonanol and 1-limonene. The common volatile flavor compounds between two plants were transcaryophyllene, sabinene, β-elemene and β-cubebene etc. However, α-phellendrene and myrcene were identified in L. stenocephala, but were not identified in L. fischeri. However α-pinene, germacrene-D and limonene were identified in L. fischeri but were not identified in L. stenocephala.

This study investigated the quality characteristics of dry-fermented sausage using goat meat and evaluated its applicability. For this, the samples were prepared by dry-fermenting a control (100% pork) and two treatments (50% goat meat replacement or 100% goat meat replacement) for 21days. The moisture content, ㏗ and water activity were decreased in all treatments whereas lactic acid bacteria (LAB), texture profile analysis (TPA) and volatile compounds were increased during dry fermentation periods. In comparison of treatments, the dry-fermented sausage showed no significant difference in proximate compositions, yield, ㏗, water activity, LAB and TPA compared to the control (P>0.05). However, sausages with goat meat also had significantly higher values of C14:1, C18:1t and C18:3 than the control (P<0.05). Analysis of volatile compounds showed increased level of hexanal, octanal and 1-hexanol as replacing pork by goat meat in dry-fermented sausages (P<0.05). Goat meat replacement increased flavor intensity of dry-fermented sausages, but no difference was observed in overall acceptability score of the control and treated samples (P>0.05). Therefore, goat meat could be useful on raw material in dry-fermented sausage as well as pork.

The emission of particulate matter and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from a motor vehicle painting booth was quantitatively evaluated. Most particulate matter was emitted during the spraying process, in which the PM10 concentration was 16.5 times higher than that of the drying process. When the paint was being sprayed, the particles with a diameter of 1.0~2.5 μm accounted for 39.4% and particles greater than 2.5 μm in diameter accounted for 30.6% of total particles. On the other hand, small particles less than 0.5 μm in diameter accounted for 52.4% of total particles during the drying process. In contrast to the particulate matter, high concentrations of VOCs were emitted during both spraying and drying processes. Butyl acetate, xylene, toluene, and m-ethyltoluene were the most abundant VOCs emitted from the motor vehicle painting booth. Additionally, xylene, butyl acetate, toluene, and 1,2,3-trimethylbenzene were the dominant ozone precursors. Especially, xylene exhibited the highest ozone production contribution (32.5~44.4%) among 34 species of the ozone precursors. The information obtained in this study can be used to establish a suitable management strategy for air pollutants from motor vehicle painting booths.

Activated carbon fibers (ACFs) were treated by electroless plating of CuO to improve their removal performance for volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The properties of these samples(CuO@ACFs) were evaluated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), BET and N2O chemisorption to determine the area and dispersion of metallic CuO. The removal efficiency for benzene was investigated by gas chromatography (GC). The breakthrough time of CuO@ACFs increased by approximately 120% compared to that of untreated ACFs at benzene of 100 ppm. CuO@ACFs removed 100% of the benzene in 20 h, indicating this material can be used as a removal technology for VOCs.

The concentration of TVOCs in public transportation in the spring and summer of 2018 was measured. Public transportation measured the concentration of TVOCs on six subway lines in Seoul, two lines of high-speed trains, and intercity buses. The measurements were taken during the operation of each route of the surveyed public transportation from the origin to the destination. In addition, the measurement time was divided into the congestion time and the non-congestion time. In the spring of 2018, in the order of subway, train A, train B, and intercity buses, TVOC concentrations during the congestion time zone were 205.9 μg/m3, 121.3 μg/m3, 171.1 μg/m3, and 88.7 μg/m3, respectively. During the non-congestion time zone, the concentrations were 177.2 μg/m3, 108.8 μg/ m3, 118.2 μg/m3, and 126.1 μg/m3, respectively. In the summer of 2018, TVOC concentrations in the order of the aforementioned transportation modes during the congestion time zone were 169.8 μg/m3, 175.8 μg/m3, 78.0 μg/ m3, and 185.3 μg/m3, respectively. During the non-congestion time zone, the concentrations were 210.8 μg/m3, 116.1 μg/m3, and 162.7 μg/m3, respectively. An analysis of BTEX concentration among VOCs in public transportation in descending order were followed by toluene > xylene > ethylbenzene > benzene. Toluene, which has the highest concentration among the BTEX compounds, was found to be 12.86 μg/m3 to 91.41 μg/m3 during spring congestion time and 7.10 μg/m3 to 39.52 μg/m3 during non-congestion time. During the summer congestion time, the concentration was 6.68 μg/m3 to 249.48 μg/m3 and 13.23 μg/m3 to 214.5 μg/m3 during the non-congestion time. The concentration of benzene was mostly less than 5 μg/m3 in transportation. Particularly in the case of toluene, the concentration is significantly higher than that of other VOCs. Accordingly, further study of toluene exposure hazards will be needed. Five percent of the surveyed TVOC concentrations exceeded the recommended indoor air quality standard of 500 μg/m3, and all 13 cases representing this percentage were found in the subway. In addition, nine of the 13 cases that exceeded the recommended standard were measured during congestion time. Therefore, VOCs in public transportation vehicles during congestion time need to be managed.

This study analyzed the nutritional composition properties of soybeans and the antioxidants, isoflavones, organic acids, and volatile flavor compounds of fermented black soybean products (FBSP). After 24 hours of fermentation, the range of water uptake ratio was 129.00-131.30%, respectively. Total polyphenols content and DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activity were higher in Cheongja-3 FBSP, flavonoids in Socheongja, while DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activities were similar in Cheongja-3 FBSP. Isoflavone contents of aglycones (daidzein, genistein, and glycitein) in Cheongja-4 FBSP increased up to 41.97 μg/g. The rank order of primary organic acids was citric acid > fumaric acid > acetic acid > lactic acid, with Cheongja-3 FBSP being the highest. This study identified a total of 34 volatile aroma-compounds, including seven alcohols, seven acids, seven ketones, five phenols, two esters, one furan, four pyrazines, and one miscellaneous. The result could be applied to determine the suitability of cultivars and the quality of the process used for fermented soybean products.

Organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite nanocrystals have attracted a lot of attention owing to their excellent optical properties such as high absorption coefficient, high diffusion length, and photoluminescence quantum yield in optoelectronic applications. Despite the many advantages of optoelectronic materials, understanding on how these materials interact with their environments is still lacking. In this study, the fluorescence properties of methylammonium lead bromide (CH3NH3PbBr3, MAPbBr3) nanoparticles are investigated for the detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and aliphatic amines (monoethylamine, diethylamine, and trimethylamine). In particular, colloidal MAPbBr3 nanoparticles demonstrate a high selectivity in response to diethylamine, in which a significant photoluminescence (PL) quenching (~ 100%) is observed at a concentration of 100 ppm. This selectivity to the aliphatic amines may originate from the relative size of the amine molecules that must be accommodated in the perovskite crystals structure with a narrow range of tolerance factor. Sensitive PL response of MAPbBr3 nanocrystals suggests a simple and effective strategy for colorimetric and fluorescence sensing of aliphatic amines in organic solution phase.