Articles | Volume 26, issue 14
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-10587-2026
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-26-10587-2026
Research article
 | 
29 Jul 2026
Research article |  | 29 Jul 2026

Indoor Burning of Arabian Incense Generates Abundant Ultrafine Particles with Strong Oxidative Potential

Liyuan Zhou, Zhancong Liang, Wei Xu, Ru-Jin Huang, Patrick K. H. Lee, and Chak K. Chan

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Cited articles

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Al-Rawas, O. A., Al-Maniri, A. A., and Al-Riyami, B. M.: Home exposure to Arabian incense (bakhour) and asthma symptoms in children: a community survey in two regions in Oman, BMC Pulm. Med., 9, 23, https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2466-9-23, 2009. 
Alarifi, S. A., Mubarak, M. M., and Alokail, M. S.: Ultrastructural changes of pneumocytes of rat exposed to Arabian incense (Bakhour), Saudi Med. J., 25, 1689–1693, 2004. 
Ault, A. P., Grassian, V. H., Carslaw, N., Collins, D. B., Destaillats, H., Donaldson, D. J., Farmer, D. K., Jimenez, J. L., McNeill, V. F., and Morrison, G. C.: Indoor surface chemistry: developing a molecular picture of reactions on indoor interfaces, Chem., 6, 3203–3218, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chempr.2020.08.023, 2020. 
Brehmer, C., Lai, A., Clark, S., Shan, M., Ni, K., Ezzati, M., Yang, X., Baumgartner, J., Schauer, J. J., and Carter, E.: The oxidative potential of personal and household PM2.5 in a rural setting in southwestern China, Environ. Sci. Technol., 53, 2788–2798, 2019. 
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Short summary
Indoor combustion sources are an important but still poorly understood cause of indoor particle pollution. Using chamber experiments, we studied a widely used incense-burning practice and found that it produces ultrafine-rich particles with strong oxidative activity. We also showed that the burning material, ignition charcoal, and ozone exposure affect how these particles form and change. This work highlights the important role of indoor combustion sources in shaping indoor particle pollution.
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