{
  "abstract": "Black carbon (BC) particles are a health-relevant component of combustion-derived air pollution, but internal exposure remains difficult to assess in biological samples. Existing biomonitoring approaches detect or count BC particles but provide limited information on particle mass or source-resolved chemical fingerprints. We reconstructed benzene polycarboxylic acid (BPCA) molecular-marker analysis into a small-volume workflow combining ambient nitric-acid digestion, nanoparticle enrichment, organic-interference removal, single-step solid-phase extraction, and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Orthogonal partial least-squares regression quantified BC mass, and a hierarchical OPLS discriminant model classified its sources. We expanded the detectable BPCA panel to 24 congeners; ten quantitative congeners supported the mass model (R 2 Y=0.955; Q 2 =0.954). Benzene hexacarboxylic acid (B6CA)-based quantification showed linear ranges matched both serum (R 2 =0.996; detection/quantification limits: 0.25/1 ng/μL) and tissue (R 2 =0.979; 0.2/4 ng/mg). Recoveries were 87.1–111.5%, with intra-day and inter-day precision below 17.5% across serum, blood, and tissue. Hierarchical modelling separated biomass-derived from fossil-derived BC, resolved selected subclasses, and correctly classified 91.0% of controlled mixtures, supporting semi-quantitative source apportionment. Method applications to biological and environmental samples showed broad matrix compatibility and source-dependent molecular fingerprints. The novel analytical workflow could support individual based human exposure and epidemiology study, and BC source-oriented climate change issue.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "State Key Laboratory of Vaccines for Infectious Diseases, School of Public Health",
    "Xiamen University",
    "Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, School of Medicine",
    "Jinan University",
    "Zigong Fourth People's Hospital, Ziliujing District, Zigong, Sichuan, China",
    "NHC Key Laboratory of Etiological Epidemiology of Chronic Diseases with High Incidence in Fujian-Taiwan Area",
    "Fujian Medical University",
    "School of Public Health",
    "Shanxi Medical University",
    "Daishan County Center for Disease Control and Prevention",
    "Beijing Key Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology, School of Public Health, School of Public Health",
    "Capital Medical University",
    "Key Laboratory of Environmental Medicine Engineering, Ministry of Education, School of Public Health",
    "Southeast University",
    "Zhoushan Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Zhoushan Municipal Institute of Public Health Supervision",
    "Department of Obstetrics, Women and Children's Hospital, School of Medicine"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 15,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Yike Zhang",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-5399-6097"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Di Liu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Yu Zou"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Cunkun Deng"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        3
      ],
      "name": "Xia-Yuhui Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Hong Pan"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5,
        6,
        7
      ],
      "name": "Yan Wu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        7,
        8
      ],
      "name": "Liangpo Liu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Jiwei Shu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        10,
        11,
        12,
        13
      ],
      "name": "Xiaobo Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        10,
        11,
        12,
        13
      ],
      "name": "Rui Chen"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2,
        3
      ],
      "name": "Pan Yang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Yi Lin"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        14
      ],
      "name": "Heng Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1,
        15
      ],
      "name": "Heqing Shen",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-6544-4919"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/0873h3f952gmx.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.26434/chemrxiv.15010371/v1",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "0873h3f952gmx",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15010371/v1",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_source": "journal",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2307|Toxic Organic Pollutants Impact"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7221624573",
  "pdf_url": "https://chemrxiv.org/doi/pdf/10.26434/chemrxiv.15010371/v1",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-13",
  "publisher": "American Chemical Society (ACS)",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/0873h3f952gmx.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:24Z",
      "native_id": "10.26434/chemrxiv.15010371",
      "source": "chemrxiv",
      "url": "https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15010371/v1"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2307|Toxic Organic Pollutants Impact",
      "subfield": "pharmacology-toxicology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Molecular Fingerprinting Enables Mass Quantification and Semi-Quantitative Source Apportionment of Black Carbon in Biological Samples and Beyond",
  "title_text": "Molecular Fingerprinting Enables Mass Quantification and Semi-Quantitative Source Apportionment of Black Carbon in Biological Samples and Beyond",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:17:24Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/0873h3f952gmx",
  "venue": "ChemRxiv",
  "versions": []
}