Indoor Air Quality in Domestic Environments during Periods Close to Italian COVID-19 Lockdown

Maria Chiara Pietrogrande, Lucia Casari, Giorgia Demaria and Mara Russo
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Maria Chiara Pietrogrande: Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
Lucia Casari: Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
Giorgia Demaria: Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, 44121 Ferrara, Italy
Mara Russo: Department of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Via Fossato di Mortara 17/19, 44121 Ferrara, Italy

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 8, 1-12

Abstract: This paper describes the in situ monitoring of indoor air quality (IAQ) in two dwellings, using low-cost IAQ sensors to provide high-density temporal and spatial data. IAQ measurements were conducted over 2-week periods in the kitchen and bedroom of each home during the winter, spring, and summer seasons, characterized by different outside parameters, that were simultaneously measured. The mean indoor PM 2.5 concentrations were about 15 ?g m ?3 in winter, they dropped to values close to 10 ?g m ?3 in spring and increased to levels of about 13 ?g m ?3 in summer. During the winter campaign, indoor PM 2.5 was found mainly associated with particle penetration inside the rooms from outdoors, because of the high outdoor PM 2.5 levels in the season. Such pollution winter episodes occur frequently in the study region, due to the combined contributions of strong anthropogenic emissions and stable atmospheric conditions. The concentrations of indoor volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and CO 2 increased with the number of occupants (humans and pets), as likely associated with consequent higher emissions through breathing and metabolic processes. They also varied with occupants’ daily activities, like cooking and cleaning. Critic CO 2 levels above the limit of 1000 ppm were observed in spring campaign, in the weeks close to the end of the COVID-19 quarantine, likely associated with the increased time that the occupants spent at home.

Keywords: indoor air quality; dwellings; PM 2.5; VOCs; CO 2 concentration; low-cost IAQ sensors; COVID-19 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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