Control of Wildfire-Sourced PM2.5 in an Office Setting Using a Commercially Available Portable Air Cleaner

Details

• Personal Author:
  Autenrieth DA ; Capoccia S ; Hart JF ; Stauffer DA
• Description:
  A steady increase in wildfire event severity and season length has led to greater potential for exposure to fine particulate matter associated with wildfire smoke. Research has found fine particulate matter to be correlated with a myriad of health ailments and thus effective strategies for controlling exposures are needed. In this study, a correction factor associated with wildfire-sourced fine particulate matter was established for a TSI SidePak AM520 by conducting sampling with a co-located MetOne BAM 1020. Portable air cleaner efficacy was assessed by simultaneously measuring PM2.5 mass concentrations in two identical offices with the inclusion of a portable air cleaner in one. The relationship between indoor and outdoor PM2.5 mass concentrations was assessed by comparing concentrations recorded in an office to those recorded at the nearest National Ambient Air Quality Standards monitoring station. Results revealed that a portable air cleaner reduced indoor fine particulate matter within an office by 73% and 92% during working and non-working hours, respectively, and that a strong significant correlation (rho = .91, p = 0.00) existed between indoor and outdoor fine particulate matter mass concentration measurements. A direct relationship between indoor and outdoor PM2.5 mass concentrations was observed during this study, suggesting that elevated fine particulate matter concentrations due to wildfire smoke could be a concern in the indoor work environment; however the current study determined that the use of a portable air cleaner can substantially decrease fine particulate matter concentrations even in an active office setting. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Air Pollution, Indoor Environmental Exposure Fires Occupational Health Particulate Matter Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety
• Keywords:
  Air Cleaning Author Keywords: Indoor Air Quality Exposure Levels Fire Hazards Health Effects IAQ Indoor Air Quality Indoor Environments Occupational Exposure Particulates PM2.5 Risk Factors Sampling Seasonal Factors SidePak Personal Aerosol Monitor Wildfire Smoke

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• ISSN:
  1545-9624
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Montana ; OSHA Region 8
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  109-120
• Volume:
  17
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20062055
• Citation:
  J Occup Environ Hyg 2020 Apr; 17(4):109-120
• Contact Point Address:
  Dylan A. Stauffer, School of Mines and Engineering, Safety, Health and Industrial Hygiene Department, Montana Technological University, Butte, Montana
• Email:
  dstauffer@mtech.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2020
• Performing Organization:
  Montana Technological University
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
• End Date:
  20290630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7e2ebb7697b657d3249af4131d1b09c53d860ce1d65a5682841cbf36d68c55b8bdb63c8bd734d4a45f5b543eae7da5161e6ce88f1b13ad9350dc7e9ec70ecece
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/225374/cdc_225374_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.71 MB ]