Analysis of Microorganism Causing Odor in an Air-Conditioning System

Kim, Ji Wan; Lee, Tae Hee

doi:10.4271/2015-01-0354

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 8 publications

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“…At the phylum-level analysis of bacterial sequencing reads, members of the phylum Proteobacteria were predominant, accounting for 50.1% to 99.3% of total sequences, in all EC samples regardless of country ( Fig. 1A), which was in line with a previous result (21). Members of the phylum Proteobacteria were more abundant in Korean, Chinese, and U.S. samples, with a mean relative abundance of 91.8% Ϯ 6.5%, than in Indian and UAE samples, with a mean relative abundance of 64.3% Ϯ 11.2%.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 91%

Dominance of Gas-Eating, Biofilm-Forming Methylobacterium Species in the Evaporator Cores of Automobile Air-Conditioning Systems

Park

Jung

Park

et al. 2020

mSphere

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Microbial communities in the evaporator core (EC) of automobile air-conditioning systems have a large impact on indoor air quality, such as malodor and allergenicity. DNA-based microbial population analysis of the ECs collected from South Korea, China, the United States, India, and the United Arab Emirates revealed the extraordinary dominance of Methylobacterium species in EC biofilms. Mixed-volatile organic compound (VOC) utilization and biofilm-forming capabilities were evaluated to explain the dominance of Methylobacterium species in the ECs. The superior growth of all Methylobacterium species could be possible under mixed-VOC conditions. Interestingly, two lifestyle groups of Methylobacterium species could be categorized as the aggregator group, which sticks together but forms a small amount of biofilm, and the biofilm-forming group, which forms a large amount of biofilm, and their genomes along with phenotypic assays were analyzed. Pili are some of the major contributors to the aggregator lifestyle, and succinoglycan exopolysaccharide production may be responsible for the biofilm formation. However, the coexistence of these two lifestyle Methylobacterium groups enhanced their biofilm formation compared to that with each single culture. IMPORTANCE Air-conditioning systems (ACS) are indispensable for human daily life; however, microbial community analysis in automobile ACS has yet to be comprehensively investigated. A bacterial community analysis of 24 heat exchanger fins from five countries (South Korea, China, the United States, India, and the United Arab Emirates [UAE]) revealed that Methylobacterium species are some of the dominant bacteria in automobile ACS. Furthermore, we suggested that the predominance of Methylobacterium species in automobile ACS is due to the utilization of mixed volatile organic compounds and their great ability for aggregation and biofilm formation.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 91%

Dominance of Gas-Eating, Biofilm-Forming Methylobacterium Species in the Evaporator Cores of Automobile Air-Conditioning Systems

Park

Jung

Park

et al. 2020

mSphere

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Odor from Building Air Conditioners: Emission Characteristics, Odor Compounds and Influencing Factors

Pei

Sun

2023

Sustainability

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The odor generated by air conditioners is an important factor influencing the perceived air quality in buildings. In this study, different types of air conditioners and air filters were investigated to study the level of odor emission related to the operation state of the compressor, to identify the odor compounds and to analyze the cooling setpoint temperature on emitted odor intensity. Results show that the odor from constant frequency air conditioner use is periodic and stronger than that from variable frequency air conditioner use due to the different operation strategies of the compressor, which affect the evaporation of condensed water on the surface of the cooling coil. Ethyl acetate, acetic acid, 2-ethyl-1-hexanol, acetaldehyde, hexanal, nonanal, toluene and n-hexane are identified as odor compounds by Odor Active Value (OAV), Gas Chromatography/Olfactory/Mass Spectrometry (GC/O/MS) and Flavornet methods. The higher cooling setpoint temperature would lead to stronger odor, due to greater release of hydrophilic odorous compounds from condensed water. In our opinion, reducing the residual condensed water in air conditioners may be the key to control odor emission before purification.

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Analysis of Microorganism Causing Odor in an Air-Conditioning System

Cited by 2 publications

References 8 publications

Dominance of Gas-Eating, Biofilm-Forming Methylobacterium Species in the Evaporator Cores of Automobile Air-Conditioning Systems

Dominance of Gas-Eating, Biofilm-Forming Methylobacterium Species in the Evaporator Cores of Automobile Air-Conditioning Systems

Odor from Building Air Conditioners: Emission Characteristics, Odor Compounds and Influencing Factors

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