Composition and correlation of volatile organic compounds and odor emissions from typical indoor building materials based on headspace analysis

Abstract

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released from indoor building materials are one of the main causes of deterioration in indoor air quality and along with odor emissions, directly affect the physical and mental health of humans. In this study, we used headspace analysis to measure VOCs and odor emissions from 19 types of building materials, including floors, furniture boards, wall coverings, and adhesives. An untrained panel was used to assess the acceptability and intensity of building materials' odor. The total VOC (TVOC) of “dry” (e.g. floors, furniture boards, and wall cloths) and “wet” (e.g. wall paints and adhesives) materials ranged from 278.3 to 869.6 μg/m3 and 219.0–3060.0 μg/m3, with median TVOC values of 501.8 μg/m3 and 252.9 μg/m3, respectively. The sum of its odor activity value (OAVsum) ranged from 0.6 to 51.7 and 0.5–17.0, with a median OAVsum of 5.1 and 7.0, respectively. Hexanal was the dominant odor-active VOC in most building materials. Median odor intensity of “dry” and “wet” materials was 3.25 and 3.08, respectively. Substantial differences were presented for TVOC but not for odor intensity. Odor could still be perceived in air mixtures with low TVOC concentration and OAVsum < 1. A combination of multiple linear regression and principal component analysis was used to establish a model for the prediction of odor intensity based on OAV (R2 = 0.746). The model shows that the OAV of aldehydes, esters, alkanes, aromatics, and phenols can predict the overall odor intensity, and phenols contribute the most to the odor.