Characteristics of Formaldehyde Pollution in Residential Buildings in a Severe Cold Area—A Case in Liaoning, China

Abstract

The negative impact of indoor formaldehyde pollution has become a growing interest, especially in severe cold areas, since most residential buildings do not have enough ventilation and people are unwilling to open windows. In order to explore the status and the influencing factors of indoor formaldehyde pollution in severe cold areas and predict the formaldehyde concentrations in these areas, a study of 60 residential buildings in Liaoning, China, was carried out using the method of phenol reagent spectrophotometry. While testing the formaldehyde concentration, the infiltration air change rate of the room was also tested using CO2 as a tracer gas. The correlation between formaldehyde concentration and its influencing factors was analyzed by SPSS software. Multiple linear regression equations were established for the linear regression analysis. The measured data were used to assess the formaldehyde cancer risk of residents in Liaoning. The test results showed that the most serious rates of average formaldehyde pollution occurred in summer with a concentration of 0.097 mg/m3, and the bedroom was the room most seriously polluted by formaldehyde in autumn with a concentration of 0.104 mg/m3. According to the correlation analysis, the formaldehyde concentration was significantly correlated with the indoor temperature, years of decoration, and the infiltration ventilation rate. The linear regression equation for predicting the formaldehyde concentration was established. According to the risk assessment of the test results, residents in Liaoning are already at risk of cancer caused by formaldehyde.