Concentrations and Sources of Volatile Organic Compounds in Urban Domestic and Public Microenvironments

Abstract

The concentrations of 15 volatile organic compounds (VOCs) including 1,3-butadiene, benzene and styrene were measured in a wide range of indoor and outdoor urban microenvironments. For all VOCs, excluding naph thalene, mean concentrations in cars exceeded those at heavily trafficked roadside locations. Concentrations were higher indoors, with no correlation observed be tween indoor and outdoor concentrations. Thus, in poor ly ventilated buildings, indoor emission source strength is considered a more significant influence on concentra tions of VOCs in indoor air than outdoor air concentra tions. In the 6 smoking homes studied, environmental tobacco smoke was found to make a substantial contri bution to concentrations of 1,3-butadiene.