PARTICULATE LEVEL IN RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS-A NEWLY DEVELOPED DUST COLLECTOR

摘要

After the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), continuous monitoring of the indoor pollutant level in indoor is compulsory. However, continuous monitoring should be reasonable and practicable. As biological contaminants may cling to fine duct particles and become airborne. The indoor particulate is a good indicator on the performance of the filtration system and a log of the dust concentration will aid the building management in tracing Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) problems. Therefore, continuous monitoring of air particulate level in indoor is obligatory. Gravimetric and light-scattering principle instruments are commonly used to measure the particulate level in the indoor environment, but the initial cost is expensive. In this study, a simple and economic device, Total Dust Collector (TDC) was developed (initial cost of HK$300 with the total weight is less than 1 kg). The performance of the Total Dust Collector (TDC) was investigated by comparing with the certify dust sampler instrument and the calibration test was performed before the field measurement. 33 residential premises were selected to investigate the indoor TSP level by the Total Dust Collector (TDC) and the indoor particulate level in residential buildings was reported. It was found that the Total Dust Collector (TDC) is a precise and simple dust monitoring equipment.