scholarly journals Plant and Plant Associated Microflora: Potential Bioremediation Option of Indoor Air Pollutants

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-74
Author(s):  
Y.H.K.I.S. Gunasinghe ◽  
I.V.N. Rathnayake ◽  
M.P. Deeyamulla
Keyword(s):  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Environmentally Friendly ◽  
Indoor Environments ◽  
Potted Plants ◽  
The People ◽  
Outdoor Environments ◽  
Negative Impacts ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

Indoor air pollution is a significant problem today because the release of various contaminants into the indoor air has created a major health threat for humans occupying indoors. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) are pollutants released into the environment and persist in the atmosphere due to its low boiling point values. Various types of indoor activities, sources, and exposure to outdoor environments enhance indoor VOCs. This poor indoor air quality leads to adverse negative impacts on the people in the indoor environment. Many physical and chemical methods have been developed to remove or decompose these compounds from indoors. However, those methods are interrupted by many environmental and other factors in the indoor atmosphere, thus limit the applications. Therefore, there is a global need to develop an effective, promising, economical, and environmentally friendly alternatives to the problem. The use of the plant and associated microflora significantly impact reducing the environmental VOC gases, inorganic gases, particulate matter, and other pollutants contained in the air. Placing potted plants in indoor environments not only helps to remove indoor air pollutants but also to boost the mood, productivity, concentration, and creativity of the occupants and reduces stress, fatigue, sore throat, and cold.  Plants normally uptake air pollutants through the roots and leaves, then metabolize, sequestrate, and excrete them. Plant-associated microorganisms help to degrade, detoxify, or sequestrate the pollutants, the air remediation, and promote plant growth. Further studies on the plant varieties and microorganisms help develop eco-friendly and environmentally friendly indoor air purifying sources.

How low-cost air pollution sensors could make homes smarter?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamid Omidvarborna ◽  
Prashant Kumar
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Prediction Models ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Mortality And Morbidity ◽  
Spatio Temporal ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

<p>The majority of people spend most of their time indoors, where they are exposed to indoor air pollutants. Indoor air pollution is ranked among the top ten largest global burden of a disease risk factor as well as the top five environmental public health risks, which could result in mortality and morbidity worldwide. The spent time in indoor environments has been recently elevated due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak when the public are advised to stay in their place for longer hours per day to protect lives. This opens an opportunity to low-cost air pollution sensors in the real-time Spatio-temporal mapping of IAQ and monitors their concentration/exposure levels indoors. However, the optimum selection of low-cost sensors (LCSs) for certain indoor application is challenging due to diversity in the air pollution sensing device technologies. Making affordable sensing units composed of individual sensors capable of measuring indoor environmental parameters and pollutant concentration for indoor applications requires a diverse scientific and engineering knowledge, which is not yet established. The study aims to gather all these methodologies and technologies in one place, where it allows transforming typical homes into smart homes by specifically focusing on IAQ. This approach addresses the following questions: 1) which and what sensors are suitable for indoor networked application by considering their specifications and limitation, 2) where to deploy sensors to better capture Spatio-temporal mapping of indoor air pollutants, while the operation is optimum, 3) how to treat the collected data from the sensor network and make them ready for the subsequent analysis and 4) how to feed data to prediction models, and which models are best suited for indoors.</p>

scholarly journals Associations Between Sub-Clinical Markers of Cardiometabolic Risk and Exposure to Residential Indoor Air Pollutants in Healthy Adults in Perth, Western Australia: A Study Protocol

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (19) ◽  
pp. 3548
Author(s):  
Suzanne E. Gilbey ◽  
Christopher M. Reid ◽  
Rachel R. Huxley ◽  
Mario J. Soares ◽  
Yun Zhao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Cardiometabolic Risk ◽  
Pulse Wave ◽  
Healthy Adults ◽  
Clinical Markers ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

Background: A growing body of epidemiological and clinical evidence has implicated air pollution as an emerging risk factor for cardiometabolic disease. Whilst individuals spend up to two-thirds of daily time in their domestic residential environment, very few studies have been designed to objectively measure the sub-clinical markers of cardiometabolic risk with exposure to domestic indoor air pollutants. This cross-sectional study aims to investigate associations between the components of domestic indoor air quality and selected sub-clinical cardiometabolic risk factors in a cohort of healthy adults living in Perth, Western Australia. Methods: One hundred and eleven non-smoking adults (65% female) living in non-smoking households who were aged between 35–69 years were recruited for the project. Study subjects were invited to participate in all sections of the study, which included: Domestic indoor air monitoring along with the concurrent 24 h ambulatory monitoring of peripheral and central blood pressure and measures of central hemodynamic indices, standardized questionnaires on aspects relating to current health status and the domestic environment, a 24 h time-activity diary during the monitoring period, and clinic-based health assessment involving collection of blood and urine biomarkers for lipid and glucose profiles, as well as measures of renal function and an analysis of central pulse wave and pulse wave velocity. Results: This study provides a standardized approach to the study of sub-clinical cardiometabolic health effects that are related to the exposure to indoor air pollution. Conclusion: The findings of this study may provide direction for future research that will further contribute to our understanding of the relationship that exists between indoor air pollution and sub-clinical markers of cardiometabolic risk.

Indoor Environment Quality in Modern Life

2013 ◽  
Vol 664 ◽  
pp. 207-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying Han ◽  
Li Fen Yi
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Indoor Environment ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Contributing Factors ◽  
Adverse Health Effects ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

There is a great improvement in modern people’s working and living environment. As the new building materials and technology appear, it brings some problems to indoor environment. more and more people pay attention to their living conditions especially the quality of indoor environment. Every year ,there are 110,000 people who die from indoor air pollution every year in China, hence indoor air pollution is affecting human health. In this paper, through analysis of the sources, adverse health effects of several common indoor air pollutants, air pollutants are major contributing factors to chronic diseases and mortality. It should be treated urgently with the people’s standard of living improvement.

Mitigation of indoor air pollutants using Areca palm potted plants in real-life settings

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bhavya Bhargava ◽  
Sandeep Malhotra ◽  
Anjali Chandel ◽  
Anjali Rakwal ◽  
Rachit Raghav Kashwap ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Potted Plants ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

scholarly journals Effectiveness and Eco-Costs of Air Cleaners in Terms of Improving Fungal Air Pollution in Dwellings Located in Southern Poland—A Preliminary Study

Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 1255
Author(s):  
Ewa Brągoszewska ◽  
Magdalena Bogacka ◽  
Krzysztof Pikoń
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Economic Cost ◽  
Airborne Fungi ◽  
Average Concentration ◽  
Indoor Environments ◽  
Air Cleaners ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

Epidemiological evidence shows that air pollution is responsible for several million premature deaths per year. By virtue of being responsible for these deaths, economic evidence shows that air pollution also imposes a so-called economic cost to society of several trillion dollars per year. The diseases caused by biological air pollutants are of primary global concern for both social and economic reasons, and given that people may spend more than 90% of their time in enclosed spaces, the investigation into methods to remove indoor air pollutants is of paramount importance. One of the methods to improve indoor air quality (IAQ) is to use air cleaners (ACLs) with high-efficiency particulate air filters (HEPA) that remove biological indoor air pollutants from indoor environments. This work presents the results of a study of fungal aerosol samples collected during the summer season from inside two dwellings (DG1 and DG2) before and after starting the use of ACLs. The fungal aerosol samples collected from each of the six stages of the sampler were incubated on agar plates at 26 °C, and the colony forming units (CFU) were manually counted and statistically corrected. The concentration of living airborne fungi was expressed as the CFU in the volume of air (CFU·m−3). The average concentration of fungal aerosol decreased the most when the ACLs were active for 24 min. The reduction was from 474 CFU·m−3 to 306 CFU·m−3, and from 582 CFU·m−3 to 338 CFU·m−3 in DG1 and DG2, respectively. The use of ACLs was assessed by the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. This study highlights the benefits of controlling biological air pollutants in order to keep occupants of buildings happy and healthy.

Research on Indoor Air Pollution Controll in China

2012 ◽  
Vol 599 ◽  
pp. 525-528
Author(s):  
Yu Guo Zhuo ◽  
Jun Liu ◽  
Yu Chun Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Present Status ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

According to present status in China to controll indoor air pollution should go on from six aspects that are temperature, relative humidity, ventilation, selecting material, purification technology and plant purification. The higher the temperature and relative humidity is, the easier indoor air pollutants are released. Ventilation and selecting material is an efficient way to controll indoor air pollution. Plant purification is a good way to improve the living environment.

Association between human health and indoor air pollution in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries: a review

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Amoatey ◽  
Hamid Omidvarborna ◽  
Mahad Said Baawain ◽  
Abdullah Al-Mamun ◽  
Aynul Bari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Respiratory Symptoms ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Health Assessment ◽  
Gulf Cooperation Council ◽  
Gcc Countries ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

AbstractStudies on the assessment of indoor air pollutants in terms of concentration and characterization in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have been recently carried out. This review assesses the health effects associated with indoor air pollution exposures in GCC, including other air pollutants (siloxanes, flame retardants, synthetic phenolic antioxidants) which were not explored in a previous study. In addition, the influence of ventilation conditions due to different indoor environments was also investigated. It was revealed that there is a lack of human health assessment studies on most indoor air pollutants in almost all GCC countries, except the United Arab Emirates, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, where few attempts were made for some specific pollutants. Commonly reported plausible health effects potentially associated with indoor air pollution were related to respiratory symptoms and sick building syndrome (SBS). Many of the current health assessment studies in GCC countries were based on predictions and/or estimates of exposures rather than clinically based observational studies. Measured ventilation levels and indoor air velocities in most buildings failed to meet the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) threshold limits of 8 L/s/p and 0.18–0.25 m/s, respectively. Additionally, limited studies have investigated respiratory symptoms and SBS potentially attributable to poor ventilation in the region. It is highly recommended that future indoor air quality (IAQ) studies in GCC should focus more on epidemiologic and intervention studies.

Recent progress on removal of indoor air pollutants by catalytic oxidation

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 311-321
Author(s):  
Guoqing Zhao ◽  
Jiao Zou ◽  
Taiheng Zhang ◽  
Caifeng Li ◽  
Shu Zhou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Catalytic Oxidation ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Indoor Air Pollution ◽  
Construction Materials ◽  
Air Pollutant ◽  
Advanced Technologies ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants ◽  
Oxidation Mechanisms

AbstractIndoor air pollutant is a serious problem due to its wide diversity and variability. The harmful substances from construction materials and decorative materials may make the indoor air pollution become more and more serious and cause serious health problems. In this paper, the review summarizes the advanced technologies for the removal of indoor air pollutants and the development in the treatment of indoor air pollution by catalytic oxidation technologies. Meanwhile, some catalytic oxidation mechanisms of indoor air pollutants are proposed in detail, and suggestions for the indoor air pollution treatment are also presented, in order to provide some reference for subsequent research.

scholarly journals Current State of Indoor Air Phytoremediation Using Potted Plants and Green Walls

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 473
Author(s):  
Samaneh Bandehali ◽  
Taghi Miri ◽  
Helen Onyeaka ◽  
Prashant Kumar
Keyword(s):  
Air Pollution ◽  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Indoor Air Quality ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Potted Plants ◽  
Green Walls ◽  
Indoor Air Pollutants

Urban civilization has a high impact on the environment and human health. The pollution level of indoor air can be 2–5 times higher than the outdoor air pollution, and sometimes it reaches up to 100 times or more in natural/mechanical ventilated buildings. Even though people spend about 90% of their time indoors, the importance of indoor air quality is less noticed. Indoor air pollution can be treated with techniques such as chemical purification, ventilation, isolation, and removing pollutions by plants (phytoremediation). Among these techniques, phytoremediation is not given proper attention and, therefore, is the focus of our review paper. Phytoremediation is an affordable and more environmentally friendly means to purify polluted indoor air. Furthermore, studies show that indoor plants can be used to regulate building temperature, decrease noise levels, and alleviate social stress. Sources of indoor air pollutants and their impact on human health are briefly discussed in this paper. The available literature on phytoremediation, including experimental works for removing volatile organic compound (VOC) and particulate matter from the indoor air and associated challenges and opportunities, are reviewed. Phytoremediation of indoor air depends on the physical properties of plants such as interfacial areas, the moisture content, and the type (hydrophobicity) as well as pollutant characteristics such as the size of particulate matter (PM). A comprehensive summary of plant species that can remove pollutants such as VOCs and PM is provided. Sources of indoor air pollutants, as well as their impact on human health, are described. Phytoremediation and its mechanism of cleaning indoor air are discussed. The potential role of green walls and potted-plants for improving indoor air quality is examined. A list of plant species suitable for indoor air phytoremediation is proposed. This review will help in making informed decisions about integrating plants into the interior building design.

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