Impact of Kerosene Heater Usage on Indoor NO2 Exposures in 50 East Tennessee Homes.

摘要

As part of a study of indoor air quality in 300 houses in Roane County, Tennessee, a special study was made on kerosene heater usage and indoor pollutant levels, with emphasis on NO2. Owners of 45 homes with kerosene heaters deployed pairs of passive NO2 monitors on a weekly basis for ten weeks and recorded the weekly amount of heater use. Without correcting for house-specific factors, such as air exchange rate, indoor NO2 levels were found to increase about 0.3 ppB per h/week of homeowner-reported heater use. In the absence of heater use, NO2 levels were about 10 ppB in houses with and without kerosene heaters. In four houses with kerosene heaters and one house without, continuous measurements were made of NO, NO(sub x), SO2 , and CO. CO and SO2 levels increased threefold and tenfold, respectively, when the heater was operated compared to when it was off. Mean SO2 levels during heater operation were 57, 46, and 110 ppB in three houses with radiant heaters and 13.5 ppB in one house with a convective heater. 5 refs., 8 figs., 3 tabs. (ERA citation 14:006409)