Abstract |
The report discusses part of a Phase I carpet bioresponse study sponsored by EPA. The study evaluated emissions from carpet samples that had previously been reported to show toxic effects on experimental mice. The report describes the major findings of only the chemical characterization work conducted at the Indoor Source Characterization Laboratory of EPA's Air and Energy Engineering Research Laboratory. All other results (animal testing, microbial testing, chemical analysis by sample extraction, and pesticide analysis) are reported separately. The experimental system used in this study, developed by Anderson Laboratories, was identical to that used by EPA's Health Effects Research Laboratory in carpet bioresponse testing. An emissions characterization team from the Contractor evaluated the experimental system and concluded that all test system developed by Anderson Laboratories was not suitable for carpet chemical emissions characterization because of poor reproducibility, non-uniform thermal conditions, and emissions from the source chamber itself. |