Composition of heavy metals and airborne fibers in the indoor environment of a building during renovation

Abstract

The renovation of a building will certainly affect the quality of air in the vicinity of where associated activities were undertaken, this includes the quality of air inside the building. Indoor air pollutants such as particulate matter, heavy metals, and fine fibers are likely to be emitted during renovation work. This study was conducted to determine the concentration of heavy metals, asbestos and suspended particulates in the Biology Building, at the Universiti Kebangsaan, Malaysia (UKM). Renovation activities were carried out widely in the laboratories which were located in this building. A low-volume sampler was used to collect suspended particulate matter of a diameter size less than 10 μm (PM₁₀) and an air sampling pump, fitted with a cellulose ester membrane filter, were used for asbestos sampling. Dust was collected using a small brush and scope. The concentration of heavy metals was determined through the use of inductively coupled plasma-mass spectroscopy and the fibers were counted through a phase contrast microscope. The concentrations of PM₁₀ recorded in the building during renovation action (ranging from 166 to 542 μg m⁻³) were higher than the value set by the Department of Safety and Health for respirable dust (150 μg m⁻³). Additionally, they were higher than the value of PM₁₀ recorded in indoor environments from other studies. The composition of heavy metals in PM₁₀ and indoor dust were found to be dominated by Zn and results also showed that the concentration of heavy metals in indoor dust and PM₁₀ in this study was higher than levels recorded in other similar studies. The asbestos concentration was 0.0038 ± 0.0011 fibers/cc. This was lower than the value set by the Malaysian Department of Occupational, Safety and Health (DOSH) regulations of 0.1 fibers/cc, but higher than the background value usually recorded in indoor environments. This study strongly suggests that renovation issues need to be considered seriously by relevant stakeholders within the university in order to ensure that the associated risks toward humans and indoor environment are eliminated, or where this is not feasible, minimized as far as possible.

Source Apportionment of Particulate Matter (PM10) and Indoor Dust in a University Building

“…This study is a continuation of our group's previous study Latif et al (2011) during the renovation of this particular building, where renovation was completed in June 2011. In this study, PCA was applied, followed by multiple linear regression (MLR), to identify the potential main sources of selected heavy metals and ionic species in PM 10 and indoor dust.…”

“…Before and after sampling, the filter papers were stored for at least 24 h in a desiccator and weighed on a 5-digit electronic microbalance (GR202, AND, Tokyo, Japan) with ± 0.1 mg uncertainty. Of the filter paper, 50% was used for heavy metal analysis, and the remainder was used for ionic composition (Latif et al, 2011). The temperature and relative humidity were simultaneously monitored using an automatic portable IQ-610 Indoor Air Quality Probe (Gray Wolf Sensing Solutions, Shelton, CT, USA).…”

“…Nevertheless, there are some similarities between office and academic buildings, for instance the use of typical office equipment, such as printers and photocopy machines, which contribute to the amounts of ozone, particulate matter, and volatile organic compounds Source Apportionment 9 (VOCs) (Cheong and Lau, 2003;Destaillats et al, 2008;Saraga et al, 2011). Moreover, dust from building materials can also be a result from common renovation activities (Latif et al, 2011).…”

Metals compositions of indoor PM2.5, health risk assessment, and birth outcomes in Lanzhou, China

“…In modern society, people spend most of their time indoors (Katsoyiannis & Bogdal, 2012;Klinmalee, Srimongkol, & Kim Oanh, 2009;Latif et al, 2011;Perez-Padilla et al 2010;Simoni et al, 2003;Sohn, Yang, Kim, Son, & Park, 2009;Zhu et al 2012). Indoor air pollution has been ranked as one of the t o p f i v e e n v i r o n m e n t a l r i s k s b y t h e U S Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA).…”

Indoor living plants’ effects on an office environment

“…Studies have focussed on aspects such as respiratory irritants, for 36 instance, nitrogen and sulphur dioxides (Taylor, 1996;Chao, 2001; Meininghaus et al, 2003;37 Baur et al, 2012); carcinogens such as asbestos (Reynolds et al, 1994;Latif et al, 2011;and 38 other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as formaldehyde (Wolverton and McDonald,39 building. The building was selected as a case study, because its facilities management were 69 investigating low carbon and sustainable methods of humidification, during the winter months.…”