Volatile organic compound concentrations and emission rates measured over one year in a new manufactured house

Abstract

A study to measure indoor concentrations and emission rates of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including formaldehyde, was conducted in a new, unoccupied manufactured house installed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) campus. The house was instrumented to continuously monitor indoor temperature and relative humidity, heating and air conditioning system operation, and outdoor weather. It also was equipped with an automated tracer gas injection and detection system to estimate air change rates every 2 h. Another were generally lowest during the winter months. Also, an apparent association between TVOC emissions and outdoor temperature was observed on a one-week time scale.

Emission Factors of Microbial Volatile Organic Compounds from Environmental Bacteria and Fungi

“…Our findings are in the upper range of emissions reported from indoor biofilms in a recent study by Adams et al They estimated using a steady-state model that the sum of mVOC concentrations from periodically wetted surfaces in a nonsick house reach tens of ppb. This seems prominent but relatively minor compared to other indoor sources such as emissions from the house materials, , or emissions from humans . The actual proportion of microbial vs nonmicrobial VOCs in residences will be directly dependent on the microbial densities, surface areas, and air change rates which can vary significantly by residence, occupant activities, and the house’s health status.…”

Formaldehyde concentrations in household air of asthma patients determined using colorimetric detector tubes

“…However, formaldehyde concentrations have been shown to be fairly consistent within the same home over the course of a week with some diurnal variation (Stock, ). Although the concentration in one manufactured home changed with season, it remained similar within the same season (Hodgson et al., ) and three other manufactured homes had consistent readings over time (Hodgson et al., ). Readings in this study were considered seasonally representative since conditions that alter readings on the short‐term time scale were minimized, such as accounting for open windows.…”

Smart ventilation energy and indoor air quality performance in residential buildings: A review

“…Measured concentrations and corresponding room-specific ventilation rates are influenced by many parameters, including differences in emission and ventilation rates, presence of a DCV strategy, presence of an air recirculating system, and also the position of the indoor doors (Rudd and Lstiburek 2000;Björling, et al 2007;Sherman 2008;Sherman and Walker 2008). To evaluate differences between well-mixed and zonal approaches this study used the metric proposed by Hodgson, et al (2004): the absolute average fractional differences, defined as the difference between two values (one in a room, one in another room) divided by the average of the two. Hodgson, et al (2004) measured VOC concentrations during one year in a new manufactured house.…”

“…To evaluate differences between well-mixed and zonal approaches this study used the metric proposed by Hodgson, et al (2004): the absolute average fractional differences, defined as the difference between two values (one in a room, one in another room) divided by the average of the two. Hodgson, et al (2004) measured VOC concentrations during one year in a new manufactured house. Depending on the particular VOC compound (of 22 studied), the absolute average fractional difference between living room and master bedroom was in the range of 1%-48%, with a standard deviation in the range 5%-58%.…”