• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
• /
• v.45 no.6
• /
• pp.668-674
• /
• 2019

Objectives: Modern people spend most of their day indoors. As the health impact of radon becomes an issue, public interest also has been growing. The primary route of potential human exposure to radon is inhalation. Long-term exposure to high levels of radon increases the risk of developing lung cancer. Radon exposure is known to be the second-leading cause of lung cancer, following tobacco smoke. This study measures the indoor radon concentrations in detached houses in area A of Chungcheongbuk-do Province considering the construction year, cracks in the houses, the location of installed detectors, and seasonal effects. Methods: The survey was conducted from September 2017 to April 2018 on 1,872 private households located in selected areas in northern Chungcheongbuk-do Province to figure out the year of building construction and the location of detector installed and identify the factors which affect radon concentrations in the air within the building. Radon was measured using a manual alpha track detector (Raduet, Hungary) with a sampling period of longer than 90 days. Results: Indoor radon concentrations in winter within area A was surveyed to be 168.3±193.3 Bq/㎥. There was more than a 2.3 times difference between buildings built before 1979 and those built after 2010. The concentration reached 195.4±221.9 Bq/㎥ for buildings with fractures and 167.2±192.4 Bq/㎥ for buildings without fractures. It was found that detectors installed in household areas with windows exhibited a lower concentration than those installed in concealed spaces. Conclusion: High concentrations of indoor radon were shown when there was a crack in the house. Also, ventilation seems to significantly affect radon concentrations because when the location of the detector in the installed site was near windows compared to an enclosed area, radon concentration variation increased. Therefore, it is considered that radon concentration is lower in summer because natural ventilation occurs more often than in winter.

• Journal of environmental and Sanitary engineering
• /
• v.23 no.2
• /
• pp.35-45
• /
• 2008

In order to recommend criteria for the administration law on indoor air quality, this study was conducted to examine the distribution and the concentration of indoor air pollutants ($PM_{10},\;CO_2$, CO, HCHO, TBC, $NO_2$, Rn, VOCs, asbestos, $O_3$) in public facilities in the Chung-Nam area. The concentrations of indoor air pollutants were obtained from sixty seven public facilities such as a cinema, an office, a restaurant, a theater and an academy. This study was performed from August to December, 2005. The results of this study showed that the concentrations of indoor air pollutants such as $PM_{10},\;CO_2$, CO, HCHO, TBC, Rn and $O_3$ were less than the recommended limits. However, the average concentration of VOCs was $521.73{\mu}g/m^3$ (GM : $221.69{\mu}g/m^3$), which was higher than the recommended limit of $400{\mu}g/m^3$. Moreover, the average concentration of $NO_2$ was 345.66ppb (GM : 69.95ppb), which was higher than the recommended limit of 50 ppb. The correlation between the concentrations of indoor air pollutants and the type of facilities with respect to $CO_2$, TBC and Rn was statistically low (p<0.05). However, the correlation was high in terms of the CO and $O_3$ concentrations (p<0.01). No relationship between the indoor air pollutants and the type of facilities was observed for $PM_{10}$, VOCs and $NO_2$. The year of construction was compared to the concentrations of indoor air pollutants. Specifically, when the construction date was less than 3 years, the HCHO, VOCs and TBC concentrations were $44.75{\mu}g/m^3,\;555.07{\mu}g/m^3$ and $337.79CFU/m^3$, respectively. These concentrations were $120{\mu}g/m^3$ and $211.84CFU/m^3$ higher for VOCs and TBC than the concentrations obtained from the facilities more than 3 years. However, the concentration of HCHO was similar between the facilities older and younger than 3 years of age. Year, temperature, humidity and indoor air pollutant correlation analyses showed that temperature and humidity, temperature and TBC, temperature and $O_3,\;PM_{10}$ and $NO_2$, HCHO and VOCs, $CO_2$ and Rn had positive relationships. However temperature and Rn, humidity and $CO_2,\;CO_2$ and $O_3,\;O_3$ and Rn had negative relationships. Accordingly, it will be necessary to manage the factors affecting indoor air quality so that the residents can have a more comfortable and healthier living environment. Ultimately, the results of this study are expected to be utilized as baseline data.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
• /
• v.50 no.1
• /
• pp.16-24
• /
• 2024

Background: Indoor PM_2.5 concentrations in residential houses can be affected by various factors depending on the season. This is because not only do the climate characteristics depend on the season, but the activity patterns of occupants are also different. Objectives: The purpose of this study is to compare factors affecting indoor PM_2.5 concentrations in apartments and detached houses in Daegu according to seasonal changes. Methods: This study included 20 households in Daegu, South Korea. The study was conducted during the summer (from July 10 to August 10, 2023) and the autumn (from September 11 to October 9, 2023). A sensor-based instrument for PM_2.5 levels was installed in the living room of each residence, and measurements were taken continuously for 24 hours at intervals of one minute during the measurement period. Based on the air quality monitoring system data in Daegu, outdoor PM_2.5 concentrations were estimated using ordinary kriging (OK) in Python. In addition, the indoor activities of the occupants were investigated using a time-activity pattern diary. The affecting factors of indoor PM_2.5 concentration were analyzed using multiple regression analysis. Results: Indoor and outdoor PM_2.5 concentrations of the residences during summer were 15.27±11.09 ㎍/m³ and 11.52±7.56 ㎍/m³, respectively. Indoor and outdoor PM_2.5 concentrations during autumn were 13.82±9.61 ㎍/m³ and 9.57±5.50 ㎍/m³, respectively. The PM_2.5 concentrations were higher in summer compared to autumn both indoors and outdoors. The primary factor affecting indoor PM_2.5 concentration in summer was occupant activity. On the other hand, during the autumn season, the primary affecting factor was outdoor PM_2.5 concentration. Conclusions: Indoor PM_2.5 concentration in residential houses is affected by occupant activity such as the inflow of outdoor PM_2.5 concentration, cooking, and cleaning, as found in previous studies. However, it was revealed that there were differences depending on the season.

• Korean Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Engineering
• /
• v.18 no.8
• /
• pp.620-626
• /
• 2006

Recently, indoor air quality (IAQ) is one of the greatest problems in our modern societies. Although research for IAQ is made rapid progress but IAQ problems concerning in door microorganism contamination is required to be studied still more. So we have investigated the indoor microorganism concentration of a variety of department store, subway station, underground shopping center, kindergartens, library where people complain about the in-door air quality. The experiment on microorganism concentration of indoor air was carried out and the average of total microorganisms was measured. Comparing the experimental results with existing foreign criterion, the experimental results show that the ministry of environment recommendation microorganism concentration value ($800 CFU/m^3$) is in need of revision in the near future.

• Proceedings of the SAREK Conference
• /
• 2006.06a
• /
• pp.311-318
• /
• 2006

CFD simulation is a tool very useful to predict the generation and absorption of the contaminant from the construction materials for the single room condition. However, there is a limit in multi-room simulation for analyzing air movement and contaminant concentration at the condition that the door of each room was closed. A lot of network simulation tool were developed which can used to analyze the mass transfer and contaminant concentration as results in the multi-room condition. However, existing network simulation method was not able to analyze the change of the heating and cooling load with the ventilation as though the change of the indoor air-pollution density was predictable. In this study, new approach to predict heating/cooling load and indoor contaminant concentration will be reviewed. New indoor contaminant concentration module reviewed in this study wad coupled with existing ESP-r network simulation method. The validity of new approach will be analysed for comparison the results of simulation and field measurement results.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Geothermal and Hydrothermal Energy
• /
• v.19 no.4
• /
• pp.39-52
• /
• 2023

This study analyzes the energy performance of a elderly care center building and the applicability of a ground source heat pump (GSHP) system through simulation approach. For this purpose, a building information modeling (BIM) program and an energy performance calculation program were used. The impact of the mechanical ventilation system on the energy requirements of the heating and cooling system and the indoor environment was also analyzed, focusing on the change in indoor carbon dioxide (CO₂) concentration, which is a representative indicator of the indoor environment (air quality). The simulation results showed that the target building exceeds Level 7 in terms of simulated primary energy consumption or actual energy consumption. In addition, it was analyzed that the target building could not maintain the indoor CO₂ concentration below the standard concentration by natural ventilation through window opening alone. Combining the GSHP system with the mechanical ventilation system (Case B and Case C) can further reduce the overall energy consumption by reducing the amount of outdoor air introduced by opening windows. The cost savings compared to the baseline case are estimated to be 67.3% for Case A, 63.7% for Case B, 65.5% for Case C, and 42.5% for Case D. It is necessary to analyze the impact of various renewable energy technologies and passive ones on the energy performance and indoor environment of elderly care centers.

• Journal of environmental and Sanitary engineering
• /
• v.12 no.3
• /
• pp.51-59
• /
• 1997

In this study, we researched the concentration of nitrogen dioxide($NO_{2}$) and sulfur dioxide($SO_{2}$) of indoor(waiting room) and outdoor(place of getting on the bus) at the bus terminals (Kang-Nam, Dong-Seoul and Nam-Bu) in Seoul to recognize the degree of pollution by exhaust gas of the diesel engine vehicles, and examine the factor that might affect air pollution of terminals. The concentration of $NO_{2}$ and $SO_{2}$ were measured in winter and summer, and the results of the analysis are as follows : The mean concentration of $NO_{2}$ was $57.49{\pm}21.86$ ppb and the concentration of outdoor with $64.10{\pm}27.69$ ppb was significantly higher than the indoor with $50.89{\pm}10.92$ ppb (p<0.05), and the highest with $73.54{\pm}25.54$ ppb at Kang-Nam terminal (p<0.01). The mean concentration of $NO_{2}$ was $62.80{\pm}24.74$ ppb in winter and $52.19{\pm}17.50$ ppb in summer, and had a not statistical difference. The mean concentration of $SO_{2}$ was $31.71{\pm}8.73$ ppb and the concentration of outdoor with $31.04{\pm}8.89$ ppb was similar to the indoor $32.29{\pm}8.70$ ppb, and the highest with $32.57{\pm}9.01$ ppb at Dong-Seoul terminal (p<0.05). The mean concentration of $SO_{2}$ in winter with $39.67{\pm}4.10$ ppb was significantly higher than in summer with $23.76{\pm}2.61$ ppb (p<0.01). The concentration of outdoor $NO_{2}$ at Kang-Nam terminal was 104, 84 ppb in winter and 81.20 ppb in summer, and had a statistical difference compared with the concentration of indoor $NO_{2}$ at Dong-Seoul and Nam-Bu terminals. The concentration of indoor $NO_{2}$ and $SO_{2}$ were higher than that of outdoor at Kang-Nam and Dong-Seoul terminals, but on the contrary, lower than that of outdoor at Nam-Bu terminal. The concentration of $NO_{2}$ and $SO_{2}$ at Nam-Bu terminal were lower than those at Kang-Nam and Dong-Seoul terminals. While the concentration of $SO_{2}$ show the large difference between winter and summer, that of $NO_{2}$ dose not.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
• /
• v.14 no.4
• /
• pp.147-155
• /
• 2005

This study was designed to investigate the effect of plant as a botanical air purification on the indoor pollution by formaldehyde. Three indoor plants such as Dracaena marhginata, Spathiphyllum and Dracaena reflexa, were placed in the artificially contaminated reactor under laboratory condition. Both plant and soil effects on removal of formaldehyde from contaminated indoor air were observed. Reductions in the formaldehyde levels appeared to have been associated with soil medium factors as well as plant factors. The effect of soil on formaldehyde reduction was high in the early stage of the experiment and the results suggest that sorption could be more important factor than microbial degradation in the initial dissipation of contaminants in the soil. It was suggested that the effect of plant on formaldehyde reduction might be related to the plant species, total leaf surface area of plant, degree of contribution of soil medium, and exposed concentration level. The results of this study showed that air purification using plants is an effective means of reduction on indoor formaldehyde level, though, utilization of soil media with high sorption capacity and/or supplementary purifying aids were also suggested when the source is continuous or exposed concentration level is high.

• KIEAE Journal
• /
• v.1 no.2
• /
• pp.21-28
• /
• 2001

Naturally-ocurring short-lived decay products of radon gas in indoor air are the dominant source of ionizing radiation exposure to the general public. It is written in BEIR VI Report(l999l the radon progeny were identified as the second cause of lung cancer next to cigarette or 10 % to 14 %(15,400 to 21,800 persons p.a.) of all lung cancer deaths in USA. Indoor radon concentrations in houses typically result from radon gaining access to houses mainly from the underlying soil. In the States, they have "Indoor Radon Abatement Act" which was converted from "Toxic Substance Control Act" in 1988 to establish the national long-term goal that indoor air should be as free of radon as the ambient air outside of buildings. To review and study techniques for controlling radon, two test cells were constructed for a series of tests and are under measuring indoor and soil gas (underneath of floor slab)radon concentrations according to EPA's measurement protocol. In this paper, important theoretical studies are previewed and the following paper will explain the test results and confirm the theories reviewed to find out suitable coefficients. On the basis of test analysis, it will be described and evaluated various techniques that can be used to mitigate elevated indoor concentration of radon including the control of radon and its decay products.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
• /
• v.18 no.5
• /
• pp.479-487
• /
• 2009

Because of the building is made airtight, Indoor Air Quality(IAQ) is go from bad to worse. There are many source of indoor pollution in any home. These include irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, headaches, dizziness, and fatigue. Such immediate effects are usually short-term and treatable. In this study was measured and analyzed VOCs exposure levels and characteristic of Indoor air pollutant from new apartments in Korea. VOCs were measured indoor pre-residential and residential in new apartment and analyzed GC/MS. The concentration levels of indoor respirable TVOC were found to be higher than those of outdoor TVOC for new apartments. Before occupation, the average indoor and outdoor concentrations were 1498.61 $ug/m^3$ and 468.38 $ug/m^3$, respectively. After being occupied, the average indoor and outdoor concentration were 847.04 $ug/m^3$ and 102.84, respectively. The concentrations of TVOC in new apartments before occupation were shown in the order of Toluene(328.12 $ug/m^3$) > m,p-Xylene(163.67 $ug/m^3$) > Ethy1benzene(80.70 $ug/m^3$>o-XYlene (67.04$ug/m^3$). In addition, the TVOCs concentrations after occupation were also found in the order of Toluene (272.28 $ug/m^3$) > m.p-Xylene(121.79 $ug/m^3$) > Ethylbenzene(53.92 $ug/m^3$)>O-Xylene(24.94 $ug/m^3$). As a result, the concentrations of VOCs in new apartment houses were shown to be affected by indoor environment according activity patterns. So new apartments need to be controled in indoor air quality so that the residents can have more comfortable and healthier living environment.