Abstract
Indoor fabric surfaces (e.g., clothes, curtains, and bedding sheets) can adsorb volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in wildfire smoke penetrating indoors. Meanwhile, the VOCs can be desorbed from the surfaces and re-emitted to air and linger indoors longer than a wildfire event. This preliminary study analysed the composition of VOCs in the oak-burning smoke and then measured the concentrations of six common VOCs (Guaiacol, 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol, 4-methyl-1,2-Benzenediol, 2,6-dimethoxyphenol, Vanillin, and 2-methoxy-4-propylphenol) adsorbed on cotton fabric for seven different exposure durations (0.16, 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 h). Smoke was generated by burning chips of oak, a common tree in California. The chemical analysis was conducted with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GCMS). We identified 46 organic compounds in the smoke from the fabric extractions. The results show that VOC accumulation on the cotton fabric increased with exposure time within 12 h and varies from chemical to chemical. The measured adsorption concentration reached 48.71 µg/kg (mass of VOC/mass of fabric) for 4-methyl-1,2-Benzenediol and 3.59 µg/kg for 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol corresponding to the highest and the lowest after a 12 h exposure.
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The study is funded by Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
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Wang, C., Liang, Y., Yao, W., Bergendahl, J., Liu, S. (2023). Indoor Fabric as an Adsorptive Reservoir for Volatile Organic Compounds in Wildfire Smoke: A Preliminary Study. In: Wang, L.L., et al. Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Building Energy and Environment. COBEE 2022. Environmental Science and Engineering. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-9822-5_250
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