Evapotranspiration from Spider and Jade Plants Can Improve Relative Humidity in an Interior Environment

Abstract

ADDITIONAL INDEX WORDS. Chlorophytum, Crassula, interiorscape, passive humidification, transpiration SUMMARY. Plants in the interiorscape have many documented benefits, but their potential for use in conjunction with mechanical heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to humidify dry indoor environments requires more study. In this research, evaporation and evapotranspiration rates for a root medium control, variegated spider plants (Chlorophytum comosum), and green jade plants (Crassula argentea) were measured over 24 hours at 25% and 60% relative humidity (RH) and 20°C to generate data for calculation of the leaf surface area and number of plants necessary to influence indoor humidity levels. Evaporation and evapotranspiration rates were higher for all cases at 25% RH compared with 60% RH. At 25% RH during lighted periods, evapotranspiration rates were %15 gÁh L1 for spider plants and 8 gÁh L1 for jade plants. Spider plants transpired during lighted periods due to their C3 photosynthetic pathway, whereas jade plants had greater evapotranspiration rates during dark periods-about 11 gÁh L1 -due to their crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) photosynthetic pathway. A combination of plants with different photosynthetic pathways (i.e., C3 and CAM combination) could contribute to greater consistency between evapotranspiration rates from day to night for humidification of interior spaces. Using the measured data, calculations indicated that 32,300 cm 2 total spider plant leaf surface area, which is 25 spider plants in 4-inch-diameter pots or fewer, larger plants, could increase the humidity of an interior bedroom from 20% RH to a more comfortable 30% RH under bright interior light conditions.

The Role of Indoor Plants in air Purification and Human Health in the Context of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Proposal for a Novel Line of Inquiry

“…Other environmental factors might be involved in viral transmission such as temperature, light, airflow, and other unstated factors. As plants modulate indoor humidity in levels above 30% ( Kerschen et al, 2016 ), we propose that the use of indoor plants can regulate humidity in confined places, which will subsequently decrease the stability of the SARS-CoV-2 in air particles and reducing its transmission rate. The proposed role of indoor plants is described in Figure 3 .…”

Effects of visible greenness, quantity and distance of indoor plants on human perceptions and physical parameters

“…[5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] Since different plant species grow under different environmental conditions, such as temperature, lighting type and intensity and humidity, they have different effects on the improvement of air quality. 8,[17][18][19] The efficient use of plants is an important consideration to ensure a healthier environment for homes and commercial businesses. Furthermore, plants can benefit people in terms of stress relief, emotions, health, thermal comfort and productivity.…”