Comparing Carbonyls Levels in Indoor Air in two Offices -Green and Old Building

Abstract

The concentrations of 17 carbonyl compounds were investigated in indoor air of two offices - one located in a green building and the other in an old building, both from Bucharest. Indoor air samples were collected during normal activities of the working staff on passive samplers. Two analytical techniques were used: Ion Chromatography for carboxylic acids and High Performance Liquid Chromatography for aldehydes and ketones. A questionnaire was administrated in order to collect information about buildings characteristics, indoor furniture, decorating materials and electronical devices used during the sampling. Formaldehyde, acroleine+acetone, acetaldehyde, hexaldehyde and carboxylic acids were the most abundant compounds that accounted for more than 50% of the total carbonyls. The majority of the aldehydes showed higher concentrations in the old building office compared to the concentrations found in the green building office. Regarding the carboxylic acids: the concentration of formic acid was slightly higher in the old building office versus the green building office; in the case of acetic acid, the concentration found in the old building office was around two times higher comparing to the green building office.

Investigation on Parabens Occurrence in Romanian WWTP Sludge by LC-MS/MS Method

“…This shows that parabens can be accumulated in sludge depending to chain length of alkyl derivate [1,6]. The profile of sludge composition is similar with that one reported in some US WWTPs in which MPB was detected in the highest concentration range (24.3-68.8ng/g), EPB has the second concentration levels (1.6-12ng/g), PPB presented concentrations ranging from 0.36-4.64ng/g [16,22].…”

Environmental Impact Assessment Regarding Indoor Air Quality Using Statistical Methods

“…We have seen an increased interest in indoor air quality, over the last few years, other than workplace atmospheres; this is due to: 1) awareness of the effects of building sealing measures and the excessive use of cleaning, maintenance and ambient products that have led, among other things, to an increase in concentrations and a greater diversification of chemical, physical or biological pollutants in the air with effect on the human health [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] and 2) the growth of indoors time spent; studies conducted in recent years it have shown that we spend 80-90% of the total time indoors. Generally, air quality is appreciated by reference to the limit values set by the World Health Organization (WHO) or other national/international regulations for each parameter.…”