Assisted Deposition of PM 2.5 from Indoor Air by Ornamental Potted Plants

Yanxiao Cao, Fei Li, Yanan Wang, Yu Yu, Zhibiao Wang, Xiaolei Liu and Ke Ding
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Yanxiao Cao: Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan 430073, China
Fei Li: Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan 430073, China
Yanan Wang: School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan 430073, China
Yu Yu: Low Carbon Water Research Center, School of Environment and Nature Resources, Renmin University of China, Beijing 10087, China
Zhibiao Wang: School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan 430073, China
Xiaolei Liu: School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan 430073, China
Ke Ding: School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan 430073, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 9, 1-10

Abstract: This study clarifies whether vegetation can promote the decrease of indoor PM 2.5 concentration. The indoor PM 2.5 concentration in two periods of 2013 in Wuhan city was simulated by cigarette burning in a series of sealed chambers. Six common indoor potted plants were selected as samples to investigate the effect of plants on PM 2.5 decline. The effects of potted plants on PM 2.5 decline were analyzed from three aspects: plant species, leaf characteristics and relative humidity. The results show that the presence of potted plants accelerated the decline of PM 2.5 . The additional removal rates (excluding gravity sedimentation of PM 2.5 itself) for Aloe vera and Epipremnum aureum were 5.2% and 30% respectively, when the initial PM 2.5 concentration was around 200 μg/m 3 . The corresponding values were 0% and 17.2%, respectively, when the initial PM 2.5 was around 300 μg/m 3 . Epipremnum aureum was the optimum potted plant for PM 2.5 sedimentation, due to its rough and groove leaf surface, highest LAI (leaf area index, 2.27), and strong humidifying capacity (i.e., can promote chamber humidity to 65% in 30–60 minutes.). Actual indoor studies have also confirmed that a certain amount of Epipremnum aureum can promote the decrease of indoor PM 2.5 . This paper provides insights on reducing the concentration of fine particulate matter by indoor greening efforts.

Keywords: potted plant; PM 2.5; indoor; Epipremnum aureum (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:9:p:2546-:d:227772

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