Characterizations and relationships between outdoor and indoor bioaerosols in an office building

Abstract

Characterizations and relationships between indoor and outdoor bioaerosols were examined in an occupied office building, equipped with an air conditioning (HVAC) system, in Tempe, Arizona, USA. A two-stage microbial air sampler was used to collect bioaerosols both inside and outside the office at fixed locations in space and at regular time intervals from August to December, 2000. Simultaneous measurements of bioaerosol, temperature, relative humidity, light intensity and wind speed were performed to explore the effects of environmental factors on bioaerosol levels. Twenty species of airborne bacteria and four genera of airborne fungi were found in our samples. The particle sizes of most outdoor and indoor bioaerosols were larger than 8.0 μm. According to the measurements of sampling days, the concentrations of outdoor bioaerosols were highest in the morning, but declined in the afternoon and reached the lowest point in the evening. The concentration peak of indoor bioaerosol (especially at the lower level) occurred in the evening, suggesting that the concentration of indoor bioaerosols follows that of outdoors, but with a time delay due to the lag associated with indoor-outdoor air exchange. With regard to the effects of four environmental factors — temperature, relative humidity, light intensity, and wind speed, the relative humidity had the most pronounced influence on the outdoor bioaerosol concentrations with the number of bacteria and fungi increasing sharply on a day of high relative humidity in the desert area.