Source appointment, chemical impacts and health risk of volatile organic compounds in an industrial park in Zibo, China

• Continuous online monitoring of 114 chemical species was conducted at two locations within an industrial park for two months. • The results identified industrial emissions as the predominant contributors to ozone formation and health risks. • Halo hydrocarbons and aromatic compounds, originating primarily from industrial activities and solvent usage were found to significantly impact human health. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) are priority tropospheric pollutants, characterized by high chemical reactivity and adverse health effects. Industrial emission is a major VOC source, yet studies on its characteristics in industrial parks within Zibo remain limited. This research investigates VOC emissions at two sites (X1 and X2) within an industrial park in Zibo during the summer of 2021, focusing on their sources, chemical impacts, and health risks. Mobile, petrochemical industry and solvent usage were identified as the predominant anthropogenic contributors at both sites. Alkene (X1: 54.71 ppbv, X2: 48.94 ppbv) was the key ozone precursor, and petrochemical industry was the largest contributor to ozone formation (X1: 33.83 ppbv, X2: 40.10 ppbv). As a typical tracer of biogenic emissions and a key contributor to ozone formation, our identification of significant industrial isoprene emissions suggests the potential for its anthropogenic regulation. Health risk assessment revealed acrolein and 1,3-butadiene as the dominant contributors to non-carcinogenic risk (expressed by hazard ratio, X1: 8.62, X2: 4.19) and carcinogenic risk (expressed by lifetime cancer risk, X1: 2.12×10 −5 , X2: 2.38×10 −5 ), respectively. Solvent usage (hazard ratio: 4.76, lifetime cancer risk:1.70×10 −5 ) contributed most at X1, while petrochemical industry (hazard ratio: 2.45, lifetime cancer risk:3.35×10 −5 ) was the largest contributor at X2. These findings underscore the need for source-specific mitigation strategies to effectively mitigate ozone and alleviate health risks in industrial regions.