Indoor measurements of air pollutants in residential houses in urban and suburban areas: Indoor versus ambient concentrations

Cheol Heon Jeong; Sepehr Salehi; J. Wu; Michelle L. North; Jong Sung Kim; Chung Wai Chow; Greg J. Evans

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.07.252

Indoor measurements of air pollutants in residential houses in urban and suburban areas: Indoor versus ambient concentrations

Cheol Heon Jeong, Sepehr Salehi, J. Wu, Michelle L. North, Jong Sung Kim, Chung Wai Chow, Greg J. Evans

Résultat de recherche: Article › examen par les pairs

59 Citations (Scopus)

Résumé

Indoor exposure to air pollutants was assessed through 99 visits to 51 homes located in downtown high-rise buildings and detached houses in suburban and rural areas. The ambient concentrations of ultrafine particles (UFP), black carbon (BC), particulate matter smaller than 2.5 μm in diameter (PM2.5), and trace elements were concurrently measured at a central monitoring site in downtown Toronto. Median hourly indoor concentrations for all measurements were 4700 particles/cm³ for UFP, 270 ng/m³ for BC, and 4 μg/m³ for PM2.5, which were lower than ambient outdoor levels by a factor of 2–3. Much higher variability was observed for indoor UFP and BC across the homes compared to ambient levels, mostly due to the influence of indoor cooking emissions. Traffic emissions appeared to have a strong influence on the indoor background (i.e., outdoor-originated) concentrations of BC, UFP, and some trace elements. Specifically, 85% and 34% of the indoor concentrations of BC and UFP were predominantly from outdoor sources, respectively. Moreover, a positive correlation was observed between indoor concentrations of BC and UFP and total road length within a 300 m buffer zone. There was no significant decrease in indoor air pollution with increasing floor level among high-rise residences. In addition to the influence of outdoor sources on indoor air quality, indoor sources contributed to elevated concentrations of K, Ca, Cr, and Cu. A factor analysis was performed on trace elements, UFP, and BC in homes to further resolve possible sources. Local traffic emissions, soil dust, biomass burning, and regional coal combustion were identified as outdoor-originated sources, while cooking emissions was a dominant indoor source. This study highlights how outdoor sources can contribute to chronic exposure in indoor environments and how indoor activities can be associated with acute exposure to temporally varying indoor-originated air pollutants.

Langue d'origine	English
Numéro d'article	133446
Journal	Science of the Total Environment
Volume	693
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.07.252
Statut de publication	Published - nov. 25 2019

Note bibliographique

Funding Information:
The study was funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Canada (Grant #301228). Operational and infrastructure support for monitoring and analysis of pollutants were provided by the Canada Foundation for Innovation. We would like to acknowledge Amanda Wheeler, Ryan Kulka, Health Canada for providing the MicroAeth, DiSCmini, and DustTrak monitors, and the study participants for allowing access to their homes. We also acknowledge the assistance of E.K. Jeon in monitoring cooking aerosol in a home.

Funding Information:
The study was funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research , Canada (Grant # 301228 ). Operational and infrastructure support for monitoring and analysis of pollutants were provided by the Canada Foundation for Innovation. We would like to acknowledge Amanda Wheeler, Ryan Kulka, Health Canada for providing the MicroAeth, DiSCmini, and DustTrak monitors, and the study participants for allowing access to their homes. We also acknowledge the assistance of E.K. Jeon in monitoring cooking aerosol in a home.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier B.V.

ASJC Scopus Subject Areas

Environmental Engineering
Environmental Chemistry
Waste Management and Disposal
Pollution

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10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.07.252

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title = "Indoor measurements of air pollutants in residential houses in urban and suburban areas: Indoor versus ambient concentrations",

abstract = "Indoor exposure to air pollutants was assessed through 99 visits to 51 homes located in downtown high-rise buildings and detached houses in suburban and rural areas. The ambient concentrations of ultrafine particles (UFP), black carbon (BC), particulate matter smaller than 2.5 μm in diameter (PM2.5), and trace elements were concurrently measured at a central monitoring site in downtown Toronto. Median hourly indoor concentrations for all measurements were 4700 particles/cm3 for UFP, 270 ng/m3 for BC, and 4 μg/m3 for PM2.5, which were lower than ambient outdoor levels by a factor of 2–3. Much higher variability was observed for indoor UFP and BC across the homes compared to ambient levels, mostly due to the influence of indoor cooking emissions. Traffic emissions appeared to have a strong influence on the indoor background (i.e., outdoor-originated) concentrations of BC, UFP, and some trace elements. Specifically, 85% and 34% of the indoor concentrations of BC and UFP were predominantly from outdoor sources, respectively. Moreover, a positive correlation was observed between indoor concentrations of BC and UFP and total road length within a 300 m buffer zone. There was no significant decrease in indoor air pollution with increasing floor level among high-rise residences. In addition to the influence of outdoor sources on indoor air quality, indoor sources contributed to elevated concentrations of K, Ca, Cr, and Cu. A factor analysis was performed on trace elements, UFP, and BC in homes to further resolve possible sources. Local traffic emissions, soil dust, biomass burning, and regional coal combustion were identified as outdoor-originated sources, while cooking emissions was a dominant indoor source. This study highlights how outdoor sources can contribute to chronic exposure in indoor environments and how indoor activities can be associated with acute exposure to temporally varying indoor-originated air pollutants.",

author = "Jeong, {Cheol Heon} and Sepehr Salehi and J. Wu and North, {Michelle L.} and Kim, {Jong Sung} and Chow, {Chung Wai} and Evans, {Greg J.}",

note = "Funding Information: The study was funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Canada (Grant #301228). Operational and infrastructure support for monitoring and analysis of pollutants were provided by the Canada Foundation for Innovation. We would like to acknowledge Amanda Wheeler, Ryan Kulka, Health Canada for providing the MicroAeth, DiSCmini, and DustTrak monitors, and the study participants for allowing access to their homes. We also acknowledge the assistance of E.K. Jeon in monitoring cooking aerosol in a home. Funding Information: The study was funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research , Canada (Grant # 301228 ). Operational and infrastructure support for monitoring and analysis of pollutants were provided by the Canada Foundation for Innovation. We would like to acknowledge Amanda Wheeler, Ryan Kulka, Health Canada for providing the MicroAeth, DiSCmini, and DustTrak monitors, and the study participants for allowing access to their homes. We also acknowledge the assistance of E.K. Jeon in monitoring cooking aerosol in a home. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2019 Elsevier B.V.",

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doi = "10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.07.252",

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AU - Jeong, Cheol Heon

AU - Salehi, Sepehr

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AU - North, Michelle L.

AU - Kim, Jong Sung

AU - Chow, Chung Wai

AU - Evans, Greg J.

N1 - Funding Information: The study was funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, Canada (Grant #301228). Operational and infrastructure support for monitoring and analysis of pollutants were provided by the Canada Foundation for Innovation. We would like to acknowledge Amanda Wheeler, Ryan Kulka, Health Canada for providing the MicroAeth, DiSCmini, and DustTrak monitors, and the study participants for allowing access to their homes. We also acknowledge the assistance of E.K. Jeon in monitoring cooking aerosol in a home. Funding Information: The study was funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research , Canada (Grant # 301228 ). Operational and infrastructure support for monitoring and analysis of pollutants were provided by the Canada Foundation for Innovation. We would like to acknowledge Amanda Wheeler, Ryan Kulka, Health Canada for providing the MicroAeth, DiSCmini, and DustTrak monitors, and the study participants for allowing access to their homes. We also acknowledge the assistance of E.K. Jeon in monitoring cooking aerosol in a home. Publisher Copyright: © 2019 Elsevier B.V.

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Y1 - 2019/11/25

N2 - Indoor exposure to air pollutants was assessed through 99 visits to 51 homes located in downtown high-rise buildings and detached houses in suburban and rural areas. The ambient concentrations of ultrafine particles (UFP), black carbon (BC), particulate matter smaller than 2.5 μm in diameter (PM2.5), and trace elements were concurrently measured at a central monitoring site in downtown Toronto. Median hourly indoor concentrations for all measurements were 4700 particles/cm3 for UFP, 270 ng/m3 for BC, and 4 μg/m3 for PM2.5, which were lower than ambient outdoor levels by a factor of 2–3. Much higher variability was observed for indoor UFP and BC across the homes compared to ambient levels, mostly due to the influence of indoor cooking emissions. Traffic emissions appeared to have a strong influence on the indoor background (i.e., outdoor-originated) concentrations of BC, UFP, and some trace elements. Specifically, 85% and 34% of the indoor concentrations of BC and UFP were predominantly from outdoor sources, respectively. Moreover, a positive correlation was observed between indoor concentrations of BC and UFP and total road length within a 300 m buffer zone. There was no significant decrease in indoor air pollution with increasing floor level among high-rise residences. In addition to the influence of outdoor sources on indoor air quality, indoor sources contributed to elevated concentrations of K, Ca, Cr, and Cu. A factor analysis was performed on trace elements, UFP, and BC in homes to further resolve possible sources. Local traffic emissions, soil dust, biomass burning, and regional coal combustion were identified as outdoor-originated sources, while cooking emissions was a dominant indoor source. This study highlights how outdoor sources can contribute to chronic exposure in indoor environments and how indoor activities can be associated with acute exposure to temporally varying indoor-originated air pollutants.

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Indoor measurements of air pollutants in residential houses in urban and suburban areas: Indoor versus ambient concentrations

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ASJC Scopus Subject Areas

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