VOC Concentrations in an Indoor Workplace Environment of a University Building

Abstract

An indoor air quality survey was conducted at selected indoor environments in the Department of Physics and Electrical Engineering of the University of Bremen, Germany, during August 2005. The mean indoor/ outdoor (I/O) ratios of pollutants appeared to be higher than 1.0 for most volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Apart from direct emissions from indoor materials and infiltration of outdoor air, environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) was a dominant factor in indoor pollution. Pollutants which were commonly associated with cleaning products and materials, including monoterpenes, aldehydes and acetone exhibited general trends of higher concentrations indoors compared to outdoor levels. Indoor concentrations of many VOCs were found to be 2—10 times higher during weekdays as compared to the weekend, exhibiting a strong correlation with human activities. A comparison with previous studies on the health risks due to selected VOCs indicates that long-term exposure to the peak values reported in this study has potential to develop adverse health effects to the occupants whereby reducing the efficiency in the workplace.