| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Science and High Technology, University of Insubria, Como, Italy;2. Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences-Hospital “L. Sacco”, University of Milan, Milano, Italy
Radiotherapy Department, Clinica Luganese Moncucco, Lugano, Switzerland;3. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Western Macedonia, Kozani, Greece;4. Scientific and Technical Centre for Building, University Paris Est, Marne-la-Vallée, France;5. Instituto Superior Técnico, Centro de Ciências e Tecnologias Nucleares, Universidade de Lisboa, Bobadela, Portugal;6. Department of Biology, Agriculture and Food Science, National Research Council, Roma, Italy;7. Cooperative Research Centre for Environmental Sciences, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary;8. National Public Health Center, Budapest, Hungary;9. Institute of Science and Innovation in Mechanical Engineering and Industrial Management, Porto, Portugal;10. The Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), The Hague, The Netherlands;11. Department of Health Protection, National Institute for Health and Welfare, Kuopio, Finland;12. Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences-Hospital “L. Sacco”, University of Milan, Milano, Italy;13. National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Abstract: | The aim of this study was to identify determinants of aldehyde and volatile organic compound (VOC) indoor air concentrations in a sample of more than 140 office rooms, in the framework of the European OFFICAIR research project. A large field campaign was performed, which included (a) the air sampling of aldehydes and VOCs in 37 newly built or recently retrofitted office buildings across 8 European countries in summer and winter and (b) the collection of information on building and offices’ characteristics using checklists. Linear mixed models for repeated measurements were applied to identify the main factors affecting the measured concentrations of selected indoor air pollutants (IAPs). Several associations between aldehydes and VOCs concentrations and buildings’ structural characteristic or occupants’ activity patterns were identified. The aldehyde and VOC determinants in office buildings include building and furnishing materials, indoor climate characteristics (room temperature and relative humidity), the use of consumer products (eg, cleaning and personal care products, office equipment), as well as the presence of outdoor sources in the proximity of the buildings (ie, vehicular traffic). Results also showed that determinants of indoor air concentrations varied considerably among different type of pollutants. |
