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SOURCES OF AIR POLLUTANTS INDOORS: VOC AND FINE PARTICULATE SPECIES
Citation:
Lewis, C. SOURCES OF AIR POLLUTANTS INDOORS: VOC AND FINE PARTICULATE SPECIES. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/J-91/072 (NTIS PB91196527), 1991.
Description:
The average concentrations of a large number of fine particle aerosol and VOC species measured in ten Boise ID residences in wintertime have been apportioned according to their contributions from all inside sources and all outside sources, regarded as two composite source categories. one of the residences had obvious indoor sources (smokers, woodburning appliances, etc.). he two category apportionment was accomplished through use of a single chamber mass balance indoor air quality model. he method depends on the availability of average concentrations measured outside each residence during the same sampling periods used for the inside measurements, and on th ability to identify one or more species that have negligible indoor sources. alculated infiltration factors (the indoor/outdoor ratio in the absence of indoor sources) for fine particle species averaged 0.5, and varied in a reasonable way with measured air change rates, essentially independent of species. nfiltration factors for the VOCs were indistinguishable from unity. he relative importance of indoor and outdoor sources to measured indoor concentrations showed great variation between species and between residences. n most homes the indoor source contribution was dominant for fine particle Si, Ca, and Fe, while the infiltration contribution was dominant for S, K, Pb, Zn, mass, and extractable organic matter. ndoor contributions to individual VOCs were frequently very large at a few residences and negligible at the others.
