Influences of home kitchen designs on indoor air quality

Abstract

Kitchen indoor air quality (IAQ) has not been well-addressed amongst other IAQ problems at home, despite the fact that cooking is one of the major home activities that can generate high levels of respirable particles and gaseous air pollutants. This study aims at investigating the effects of home kitchen designs on the performance of various ventilation strategies in reducing exposure to IAQ pollutants. The degree of natural ventilation was found to be dependent largely on the relative position of window and door opening, and using mixed ventilation with natural cross-ventilation and mechanical ventilation did not necessarily provide better ventilation. Natural ventilation with the added fume extraction by the exhaust fan could not protect the occupants from high levels of cooking pollutants. Range hood on the other hand could quickly and locally remove particles and gaseous cooking pollutants from the source. The study recommends using a range hood alone during cooking or with single-side natural ventilation to maintain an acceptable IAQ in the home kitchen.