INDOOR AIR POLLUTION BY VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS (VOC) EMITTED FROM FLOORING MATERIAL IN A TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY IN SWITZERLAND

摘要

A case study was conducted at a technical university where employees and students complained about deteriorated indoor air after the building had been renovated. Some employees even suffered from sickness and headache. Indoor air concentrations of total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) were elevated in both laboratory halls and reference rooms. Concentrations of most chemicals decreased considerably after six months. The smell intensity decreased in parallel but still was rated as highly annoying. The source of the odorous compounds and most probably of the health problems was identified to be the vinyl (PVC) flooring. The vinyl flooring emitted, among others, phenol and 2-ethylhexanol. Emission factors correlated inversely with the frequency of room usage. The results provide an example of the use of unsuitable building products with respect to healthy indoor air. In future projects it is suggested to focus on the effect of co-exposure to multiple component mixtures of pollutants.