Data analysis of indoor air pollutants in the laboratories of an Indian engineering institute

Abstract

Introduction: Indoor Air Pollution (IAP) is a serious problem, especially in enclosed environments where humans are present for a long period. Similar enclosed environments can be seen in educational Institutions, where employees and students spend much of their time. The objective of this research is to assess the Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) of engineering Institute's laboratories. Materials and methods: The sample of Indoor Air Pollutants (IAPs) such as Particulate Matters (PM1.0, PM2.5, PM10), Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOC), Formaldehyde (HCHO), and Carbon dioxide (CO2) were obtained by using a portable air quality meter from 12 different laboratories during July 2021 to September 2021 from 10:00 to 17:00. The statistical analysis was performed to interpret the outcomes. Results: As a result, the higher concentration of PM1.0, PM2.5, PM10, TVOC, HCHO, and CO2 was observed in ML11, ML2, ML12, ML5 and ML4. The correlation analysis shows that all laboratories, with the exception of ML4, ML5, ML9, and ML11, show good positive correlation for Particulate Matter (PM) of all sizes (R2>0.90). Additionally, ML6 and ML9 exhibited a strong positive association (R2 >0.78) for TVOC, ML4 and ML8 for HCHO (R2>0.68), and ML3 and ML10 for CO2(R2>0.66). In addition, cluster analysis was performed on the datasets to group them into similar source categories. As a result, 3, 2, 2, 4, 3, and 3 clusters for PM1.0, PM2.5, PM10, TVOC, HCHO, and CO2 are extracted. Conclusion: Overall, it appears that the presence of IAPs is caused by nearby outdoor activities, sweeping and dusting, wood furniture, paints, and poor ventilation in laboratories.

Keywords

• Indoor air quality (IAQ); Indoor air pollutants (IAPs); Cluster analysis; Correlation analysis; Descriptive statistics