An overview of health hazards of volatile organic compounds regulated as indoor air pollutants

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen-Tien Tsai
Keyword(s):  
Volatile Organic Compounds ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Aromatic Compounds ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Indoor Environments ◽  
International Agencies ◽  
Volatile Organic ◽  
Standards And Guidelines ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

Abstract Indoor air quality (IAQ) standards and guidelines for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been stipulated by various national and international agencies. The main purpose of this paper is to establish an overview of indoor VOCs regarding their impacts on human health. Herein, 13 VOCs were designated as indoor air pollutants (IAPs) in the IAQ standards and guidelines. They were further grouped into four types: nonchlorinated aromatic compounds, chlorinated aromatic compounds, chlorinated aliphatic compounds and aldehydes. For this purpose, the present study discusses the criteria for designating VOCs, and summarizes their main sources in indoor environments. Because the occupational exposure limit (OEL) in workplaces has often used as a preliminary basis for establishing acceptable health-based IAQ guidelines in buildings and residences, this paper thus reviews the OEL values, especially in the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH)-threshold limit value (TLV). In addition, this paper also reviews the information about the classification of carcinogenicity in human by the international agencies for these VOCs. It shows that human tissues, including kidney, liver, leukemia, nasal cavity, paranasal sinus, liver and bile duct, could be more involved in the development of cancers or tumors when people are exposed to these VOCs through inhalation route in buildings over a long period of time.

Research of the Distribution of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) in Print Shops in Xi’an

2012 ◽  
Vol 209-211 ◽  
pp. 1560-1565
Author(s):  
Shu Yun Wu ◽  
Zeng Feng Yan ◽  
Jun Gang Dong ◽  
Huan Huan Liu
Keyword(s):  
Volatile Organic Compounds ◽  
Indoor Air Quality ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Volatile Organic ◽  
Print Shop ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are major constituents of the indoor air pollutants. The indoor air quality has caused wide concern for VOCs may affect human health in many ways. The VOCs in general rooms volatilize from building materials, furniture and so on. In print shops the print equipment and materials may produce a large amount of VOCs that may affect the health of the long-term print shop workers. The author has measured the VOC content and the air indexes in a seventy square-meter print shop in Xi’an with comprehensive functions, then, evaluated the pollution and proposed the preventions of the VOC content in print shops.

scholarly journals COMPOSTOS ORGÂNICOS VOLÁTEIS DE TINTAS IMOBILIÁRIAS E CERTIFICAÇÕES AMBIENTAIS: ESTUDO DE CASO PARA SUBSOLOS

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Henrique Oliveira Merten ◽  
Matheus Borges Silva ◽  
Lucas Rosse Caldas ◽  
Rosa Maria Sposto
Keyword(s):  
Volatile Organic Compounds ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Indoor Environments ◽  
Environmental Laws ◽  
Volatile Organic ◽  
The World

RESUMO: Compostos orgânicos voláteis são poluentes atmosféricos capazes de provocar uma série de danos à saúde dos seres humanos, o que mostra a importância do seu estudo. Apesar disto, as legislações e certificações ambientais vigentes no mundo e no Brasil apresentam parâmetros muitas vezes ineficientes em relação a esses contaminantes. Neste contexto, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo a avaliação das legislações e certificações ambientais nacionais e internacionais em relação ao critério de concentração de compostos orgânicos voláteis (COVs) em ambientes internos. Para tanto, foi apresentada uma avaliação simplificada da concentração de COVs emitidos por tintas imobiliárias nos subsolos de um edifício em Brasília, a fim de embasar a análise realizada. A principal contribuição deste trabalho foi apresentar a quantificação de COVs para o estudo de caso analisado, as lacunas presentes nas certificações e legislações ambientais com relação aos COVs, ressaltando os pontos que precisam ser melhorados na legislação para a minimização dos impactos à saúde causados por esses compostos. ABSTRACT: Volatile organic compounds are air pollutants that can cause a lot of damage to human health, which shows the importance of their study. Despite this, laws and environmental certifications in the world and Brazil have parameters often inefficient in relation to these contaminants. In this context, this study aimed to evaluate the legislation and national and international environmental certifications for the criterion of concentration of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in indoor environments. Therefore, it was presented a simplified evaluation of VOC concentration emitted by housing paints in the basement of a building in Brasilia, in order to base this analysis. The main contribution of this paper was to present the quantification of VOCs for the analyzed case study, the gaps present in certifications and environmental laws relative to VOCs, highlighting the points that need to improve in legislation to minimize the health impacts caused by the VOCs.

Comparison of different TiO2 photocatalysts for the gas phase oxidation of volatile organic compounds

2004 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 241-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Raillard ◽  
V. Héquet ◽  
P. Le Cloirec ◽  
J. Legrand
Keyword(s):  
Volatile Organic Compounds ◽  
Methyl Ethyl Ketone ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Photocatalytic Oxidation ◽  
Kinetic Studies ◽  
Methyl Ethyl ◽  
Low Concentrations ◽  
Volatile Organic ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

Gas-solid photocatalyzed oxidation of air contaminants is being explored more and more for possible application to decontamination, purification and deodorization of enclosed atmospheres. Indoor air is characterized by a huge number of pollutants at low concentrations. Volatile organic compounds (VOC) represent the main indoor air pollutants category, and are of great concern since some of them can act negatively on human health. Several treatments exist to reduce VOC concentrations in gaseous effluents, but photocatalytic oxidation appears to be the most appropriate regarding indoor air specific constraints. It is then necessary to develop photocatalysts, which can possibly be used in an application such as indoor air-quality improvement. In the present work, three different TiO2-based materials were studied and compared for the photocatalytic oxidation of a typical pollutant of indoor air: methyl ethyl ketone. Kinetic studies were performed for each material in dry and humid air conditions, and the Langmuir-Hinshelwood model was satisfactorily applied in almost every case. A second approach consisted of determining methyl ethyl ketone degradation by-products. Acetaldehyde was found to be the main gaseous intermediate, and could be taken into account in the general Langmuir-Hinshelwood modeling.

scholarly journals The Study of an Ultraviolet Radiation Technique for Removal of the Indoor Air Volatile Organic Compounds and Bioaerosol

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (14) ◽  
pp. 2557
Author(s):  
Liu ◽  
Tseng ◽  
Wang ◽  
Dai ◽  
Shih
Keyword(s):  
Volatile Organic Compounds ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Volatile Organic ◽  
Radiation Technique ◽  
Bacteria And Fungi ◽  
Total Volatile Organic Compounds

This study examined the use of high dosages of ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) (253.7 nm) to deal with various concentrations of air pollutants, such as formaldehyde (HCHO), total volatile organic compounds (TVOC), under various conditions of humidity. A number of irradiation methods were applied for various durations in field studies to examine the efficiency of removing HCHO, TVOC, bacteria, and fungi. The removal efficiency of air pollutants (HCHO and bacteria) through long-term exposure to UVGI appears to increase with time. The effects on TVOC and fungi concentration were insignificant in the first week; however, improvements were observed in the second week. No differences were observed regarding the removal of HCHO and TVOC among the various irradiation methods in this study; however significant differences were observed in the removal of bacteria and fungi.

scholarly journals Species and characteristics of volatile organic compounds emitted from an auto-repair painting workshop

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Y. Song ◽  
H. Chun
Keyword(s):  
Volatile Organic Compounds ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Butyl Acetate ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Indoor Environments ◽  
Voc Emissions ◽  
Volatile Organic ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Adsorption Systems

AbstractVolatile organic compounds (VOCs) are secondary pollutant precursors having adverse impacts on the environment and human health. Although VOC emissions, their sources, and impacts have been investigated, the focus has been on large-scale industrial sources or indoor environments; studies on relatively small-scale enterprises (e.g., auto-repair workshops) are lacking. Here, we performed field VOC measurements for an auto-repair painting facility in Korea and analyzed the characteristics of VOCs emitted from the main painting workshop (top coat). The total VOC concentration was 5069–8058 ppb, and 24–35 species were detected. The VOCs were mainly identified as butyl acetate, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene compounds. VOC characteristics differed depending on the paint type. Butyl acetate had the highest concentration in both water- and oil-based paints; however, its concentration and proportion were higher in the former (3256 ppb, 65.5%) than in the latter (2449 ppb, 31.1%). Comparing VOC concentration before and after passing through adsorption systems, concentrations of most VOCs were lower at the outlets than the inlets of the adsorption systems, but were found to be high at the outlets in some workshops. These results provide a theoretical basis for developing effective VOC control systems and managing VOC emissions from auto-repair painting workshops.

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