The AB²C model (Activity-Based modeling framework for Black Carbon exposure assessment) was developed to
assess personal exposure to air pollution, more specifically black carbon. Currently the model calculates exposure in
Flanders, an urbanized region in Western Europe. This model is characterized by the use of time-activity patterns,
and air pollution concentrations with a high spatial and temporal resolution, including indoors and in the transport
microenvironment. This model can be used for disaggregated exposure assessment or the evaluation of policy
scenarios. In this paper, exposure of people from a lower socioeconomic class (SEC) is compared to the exposure of
people from a higher SEC. In most North American studies, it is reported that poorer people are exposed to higher
concentrations and suffer more from health effects associated with elevated exposure to air pollution. In Europe,
fewer studies exist in this field, and results are not always conclusive. In this study, people from a lower SEC were
found to be exposed to higher concentrations at home, but ‘richer’ people travel more, especially in traffic peak
hours. This results in an average exposure that is higher for members of a lower SEC, but inhaled doses are similar
in both groups. This analysis suggests that differences in health impact between the groups are almost completely
explainable by increased susceptibility to air pollution health effects, and not by increased air pollutant intake.