Abstract
ABSTRACT Since the 1950s, awareness of the impact of air pollution on human health has been growing. Of the many recognized air pollutants, suspended particulate matter has received the most attention, as both PM2.5 and PM10 can affect humans upon inhalation. Consequently, PM monitoring is critical to linking indoor pollution and exposure, and a validated measuring instrument is essential. Portable monitors, which track temporal changes in the aerosol mass concentration in real time, are a faster alternative to offline gravimetric techniques, which provide only averaged values. Hence, this study evaluated the performance of the DustTrak DRX aerosol monitor in assessing indoor air quality and validated its ability to measure complex aerosols. Three DustTrak units were used to measure different aerosols, e.g., ambient air, polystyrene latex (PSL) spheres, and environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), and the results were compared to those obtained with the standard gravimetric method. Notably, the bias of the DustTrak relative to the gravimetric method for ETS measurements ranged from 2% to 15% when a photometric calibration factor (PCF) of 0.38 was applied. Additionally, the working range of the tested units was established, and the limits of detection and quantification were found to be 5 and 15 µg m–3, respectively. Finally, in order to serve as an alternative to the gravimetric method, these instruments must be accredited for PM measurement in accordance with standards such as ISO 17025.
Highlights
The demographic expansion and advent of mass production at the beginning of the last century led to a steep rise in anthropogenic activities, resulting in a massive increase in air pollution (Friket, 1931; Brunekreef, 2010)
Over the last 30 years, this has proved to be a matter of the highest concern to health authorities around the globe, with particular attention paid to the increase in suspended particulate matter (PM) mass concentrations associated with sources such as mineral dust, cigarette smoke, biomass burning, and combustion engine emissions, to cite a few (Ott and Siegmann, 2006; WHO, 2006; Methner et al, 2010; Buonanno et al, 2011; McNamara et al, 2011; Rakowska et al, 2014)
The DustTrak DRX is a powerful tool for monitoring suspended PM mass concentrations online and a good alternative to the respirable suspended particles (RSP) gravimetric method, which is laborintensive and does not allow for real-time tracking of PM2.5 mass concentrations
Summary
The demographic expansion and advent of mass production at the beginning of the last century led to a steep rise in anthropogenic activities, resulting in a massive increase in air pollution (Friket, 1931; Brunekreef, 2010). If the deposited PM is composed of water-insoluble elements, solid-state particles may be transported into the blood stream, promoting risk-related diseases such as cardiopulmonary disorders and/or cancer (Brook et al, 2010; Silva et al, 2013; Segersson et al, 2017). For this reason, accurate measurement of PM2.5 concentrations is essential for estimating dose exposure in different environments and ensuring that the outdoor and indoor air quality is acceptable against established standards, thereby contributing to a good quality of life
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