Combined effects of temperature and humidity on indoor VOCs pollution: Intercity comparison

Publication date: 15 August 2017
Source:Building and Environment, Volume 121
Author(s): Chen Zhou, Yu Zhan, Shuguang Chen, Meng Xia, Cornelis Ronda, Ming Sun, Hongyu Chen, Xueyou Shen
Indoor VOCs still remain at high levels in many areas, which may directly impact human health. In this study, hundreds of residential indoor air samples were collected in Xi'an and Hangzhou from April 2014 to November 2015. Indoor VOC pollution level of newly renovated residences was more serious than that of old residences (approximately 10–15 times). The mean indoor VOC level of newly renovated residences in Xi'an was 0.882 ± 1.922 mg/m³, similar to Hangzhou's levels (0.862 ± 1.394 mg/m³). But part of the benzene homologues concentrations in Hangzhou were higher than those in Xi'an, and the exposure risk in Hangzhou could be 1.5 to 8 times that in Xi'an. This study aims to identify characteristics of indoor VOC pollution, quantitatively estimate the combined effects of temperature and humidity, and reveal sink mechanism associated with indoor VOCs. The results indicate that indoor VOC pollution in newly renovated residences is mainly affected by the combination of temperature and humidity as sink effect, especially for the components with large Henry's Law Constant. The results of this study also provide valuable guidance on indoor VOC pollution control, i.e., humidity control is a countermeasure to reduce potential indoor air pollution for people who live in humid areas.

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