Indoor Air Quality: Occurrence and Health Effects of Contaminants 3031400771, 9783031400773

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Hermann Fromme

Indoor Air Quality Occurrence and Health Effects of Contaminants

Indoor Air Quality

Hermann Fromme

Indoor Air Quality Occurrence and Health Effects of Contaminants

Hermann Fromme Institute and Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich Munich, Germany

ISBN 978-3-031-40077-3 ISBN 978-3-031-40078-0 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-40078-0

(eBook)

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 English translation of the 1st original German edition published by ecomed-Storck GmbH, Landsberg, 2021 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland Paper in this product is recyclable.

I would like to dedicate this book with love to my son Fabian and my wife Ulla. Thank you very much for being with me.

Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do. (J.W. von Goethe)

Preface

Dear Reader, we are all exposed to a wide range of influences from our living environment, with a broad spectrum of very different factors constantly affecting us. In addition to social and psychosocial factors, particular emphasis must be placed on the physical, chemical, and biological factors that can have a lasting and detrimental effect on our health. Against this background, the living environment is increasingly understood as a mutually influencing network of the most diverse factors in which we are integrated. Just how complex our living situation has now become is shown by the fact that around 100,000 chemicals are used on a large scale worldwide and we may also be exposed to many of them regularly. However, the aforementioned network is also subject to constant change, as new factors are added and old ones lose or disappear in importance. We must be aware of these developments as early as possible to be able to respond better to them with preventive measures. People spend a large proportion of their lives indoors, so knowledge of this environmental compartment is particularly important. However, the significance of indoor spaces is often underestimated or not even adequately perceived. This is even though each adult takes about 22,000 breaths per day, inhaling approximately 11,000 liters of air. A large part of this takes place indoors. We must be aware that we will only be able to reliably assess health risks conveyed via indoor spaces if we significantly increase our knowledge in this area. So far, it is often still limited and incomplete. Against this background, the book aims to present the current state of knowledge on indoor pollution in detail, to briefly describe health aspects and to show possibilities for a risk assessment. The focus is on chemical substances and physical and biological factors that occur more frequently indoors, are of particular health significance, or for which only limited information on their occurrence indoors is available to date. It also aims to help identify where “new” problems may arise in the future and where we lack data for a valid exposure and risk assessment as well as for a consequent risk management. Munich, Germany

Hermann Fromme ix

Contents

1

Indoor Environment: Background Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1 Indoor Environmental Quality and Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.1 Indoor Air Quality and Health in Schools . . . . . . . . . . 1.1.2 Sick Building Syndrome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2 Indoor Climate, Comfort, and Climate Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.1 Indoor Climate and Comfort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.2 Indoor Environment and Climate Change . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3 Chemical Reactions in Indoor Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4 Humans as a Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5 Key Points for the Sampling of Indoor Pollutants . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.1 Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.2 Semi-volatile Organic Compound (SVOC) . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.3 Particulate Matter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.4 New Passive Sampler Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6 Measures to Improve Indoor Air Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6.1 Ventilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6.2 Air Purification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7 Important Information Options on the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.1 Toxicological Fact Databases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7.2 Literature Search in Databases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1 3 4 5 7 7 10 11 13 16 16 18 18 20 22 22 23 26 26 27 27

2

Basic Exposure Information and Special Exposure Situation . . . . . 2.1 Process of Exposure Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2 The Exposome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 Importance of Human Biomonitoring in Exposure Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4 Importance of Textiles in Exposure Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5 Indoor Residence Times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

37 38 41 42 44 45

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2.6

3

Fundamentals of the Behavior of Pollutants in the Lungs . . . . . . 2.6.1 Absorption of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) . . . 2.6.2 Deposition of Semi-volatile Organic Compounds (SVOC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.3 Particle Deposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7 Basics of Absorption Via the Skin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8 Dust as a Basis for Risk Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8.1 Basic Aspects of an Assessment of Dust . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8.2 Intake Rates for Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8.3 Significance of the Particle Size Distribution . . . . . . . . 2.8.4 Bioaccessibility and Bioavailability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9 Special Indoor Exposure Situations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.1 Use of Laser Printers and Photocopiers . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.2 Use of 3D Printers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.3 Open Fires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.4 Aircraft Cabins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.5 Rubber Granules and Indoor Synthetic Turf . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

47 48 49 50 52 53 55 55 57 58 60 60 61 65 68 74 78

Volatile Organic Compounds and Very Volatile Organic Compounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1 Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.2 Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOC) . . . . . . . . 3.1.3 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.4 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2 Aldehydes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.1 Formaldehyde . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.2 Other Aldehydes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3 Glycol Ethers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.3 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.4 Factors Influencing Indoor Air Concentrations . . . . . . . 3.4 Isothiazolinones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.2 Occurrence in Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5 Methyl Methacrylates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5.2 Occurrence in Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6 Emerging PFAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6.3 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . .

93 94 95 96 98 105 106 106 110 115 115 116 120 120 122 123 123 124 124 125 126 128 129 132

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3.6.4 Occurrence in Dust of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6.5 Occurrence in Dust of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.7 Oximes (Butanone Oxime) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.7.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.7.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.8 Naphthalene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.8.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.8.2 Occurence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.8.3 Occurence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 3.9 Very Volatile Organic Compounds (VVOC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

132 134 134 135 135 136 136 137 138 143 144

Semi-volatile Organic Compounds (SVOC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.2 Occurrence of PAH in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . 4.1.3 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.4 Occurrence in the Air of Transport Microenvironments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.5 Dibenzopyrenes and Benzo[c]fluorene in the Air . . . . . 4.1.6 Occurrence of Other PAH Classes in the Air . . . . . . . . 4.1.7 Occurrence in Dust of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1.8 Occurrence in Dust of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2 Organochlorine Pesticides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3 Carbazole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.2 Occurrence in Indoor Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4 Plasticizers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.1 Phthalate Plasticizers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.2 Nonphthalate Plasticizers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.3 Alkanesulfonic Acid Phenyl Ester (Mesamoll®) . . . . . . 4.5 Dechloranes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6 4.6.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.3 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6.4 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

157 158 159 161 166 168 168 171 172 174 174 177 177 179 180 181 181 182 183 193 199 200 201 201 202 204 204 205 207 207

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4.7

4.8

4.9

4.10

4.11

4.12

4.13

4.14

4.15

4.16

Emerging Brominated Flame Retardants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.7.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bromophenols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.8.2 Occurrence in Air and Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Organophosphate Flame Retardants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9.2 Occurrence of Triesters in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9.3 Occurrence of Triesters in Dust of Residences . . . . . . . 4.9.4 Occurrence of Triesters in Dust of Public Facilities . . . . 4.9.5 Occurrence of Diesters in Air and Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.9.6 Emerging Organophosphates in Indoor Spaces . . . . . . . Diisocyanates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.10.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.10.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Perfluorinated Alkyl Sulfonates and Perfluorinated Alkyl Carboxylic Acids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.11.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.11.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.11.3 Occurrence in Dust of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.11.4 Occurrence in Dust of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.12.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.12.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.12.3 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 4.12.4 Occurrence in the Air of Contaminated Buildings . . . . . 4.12.5 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins/Furans and Dioxin-like PCB . . . 4.13.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.13.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.13.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Polybrominated Dibenzodioxins/Furans (PBDD/F) . . . . . . . . . . 4.14.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.14.2 Occurrence in the Indoor Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . Polychlorinated Naphthalenes (PCN) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.15.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.15.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.15.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Synthetic Musk Compounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.16.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.16.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.16.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

212 214 214 215 219 220 220 220 222 222 225 228 228 230 231 235 236 237 239 239 239 243 243 244 245 247 248 249 249 250 252 253 254 254 255 255 256 256 257 257 258 258 259

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4.17

Pyrethroids/Pyrethrum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.17.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.17.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.17.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.17.4 Occurrence Indoors Following Applications . . . . . . . . . 4.18 Bisphenols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.18.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.18.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.18.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.19 Parabens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.19.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.19.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.19.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.20 Perchlorates/Chlorates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.20.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.20.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.20.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.21 Chlorinated Paraffins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.21.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.21.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.21.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.22 Organotin Compounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.22.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.22.2 Occurrence in the Indoor Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.23 Volatile Methylsiloxanes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.23.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.23.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.23.3 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 4.23.4 Occurrence in the Office Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.23.5 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.24 Organic UV Light Protection Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.24.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.24.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.24.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

262 263 263 264 267 268 269 269 269 271 272 272 272 273 274 274 275 275 276 276 277 278 279 279 281 282 283 285 287 287 289 290 291 291 294

Particulate Matter (PM) and Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1 Particle Indoors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3 Particle Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.1 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.2 Occurrence in the Air of Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3.3 Occurrence in the Air of Daycare Centers . . . . . . . . . .

331 333 335 336 336 339 341

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5.3.4 5.3.5 5.3.6

6

Occurrence in the Office Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Occurrence in Ground Transport Microenvironments . . . Occurrence in Underground Transport Microenvironments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4 Ultrafine Particles (UFP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.1 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.2 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.3 Occurrence in the Office Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.4 Occurrence in the Air of Ground Transport Microenvironments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4.5 Occurrence in the Air of Underground Transport Microenvironments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5 Engineered Nanoparticles (eNP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6 Man-Made Vitreous Fibers (MMVF) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.7 Asbestos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.7.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.7.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.8 Microplastics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.8.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.8.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.8.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

342 342

Bioaerosols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1 Molds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2 Microbial Volatile Organic Compounds (mVOC) . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3 Mycotoxins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3.3 6.4 β-D-glucan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4.3 Occurrence in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

391 392 392 393 395 395 396 396 398 399 399 400 404 404 405 405

346 348 351 352 353 353 356 357 359 359 360 361 362 363 364 366 367 367 368 370 371

Contents

xvii

6.5

406 406

Viruses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.1 Indoor Transmission Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.2 Transmission Possibility in Public and Private Indoor Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.3 Possibility of Transmission in Aircraft Cabins . . . . . . . 6.5.4 Transmission Through Contaminated Room Surfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5.5 Measures to Protect Against Indoor Transmission . . . . . 6.6 Inhalation Allergens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.2 Occurrence of Cat Allergens in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.3 Occurrence of Cat Allergens in the Air of Schools . . . . 6.6.4 Occurrence of Cat Allergens in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.5 Occurrence of Mite Allergens in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.6 Occurrence of Mite Allergens in the Air of Schools . . . 6.6.7 Occurrence of Mite Allergens in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6.8 Occurrence of Other Allergens in the Indoor Air . . . . . 6.6.9 Occurrence of Other Allergens in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.7 Endotoxins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.7.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.7.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.7.3 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 6.7.4 Occurrence in Dust of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.7.5 Occurrence in Dust of Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Inorganic Gases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1 Carbon Dioxide (CO2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1.2 Occurrence Indoors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2 Carbon Monoxide (CO) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2.2 Occurrence in Indoor Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3 Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3.3 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 7.4 Ammonia (NH3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.4.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.4.2 Occurrence in Indoor Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5 Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5.2 Occurrence in Indoor Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

408 410 412 412 414 414 415 415 417 419 420 420 421 421 422 423 423 425 426 427 427 443 443 445 446 450 450 451 451 452 452 455 455 457 457 460 461 461

7.6

Ozone (O3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

463 464 465 467

8

Radon and Metals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1 Radon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1.3 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1.4 Measures to Reduce Exposure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2 Metals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2.3 Occurrence of Elemental Mercury in Air . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2.4 Occurrence in the Air of Public Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2.5 Lead in the Air of Indoor Firing Ranges . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2.6 Occurrence of metals in Dust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

479 479 480 481 484 485 486 489 490 491 492 493 494 497

9

Smoking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1 Smoking Tobacco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1.2 Occurrence in the Air of Residences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1.3 Occurrence in the Air of Hospitality Venues . . . . . . . . 9.2 Shisha (Water pipe) Smoke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.2.1 Importance of the So-called Tobacco-Free Smoking Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.2.2 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.2.3 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.3 Smoking e-Cigarettes and e-Shishas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.3.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.3.2 Occurrence in Indoor Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4 Smoking Illicit Drugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.1 Health Aspects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.2 Occurrence in the Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

505 505 507 508 509 514 516 517 517 521 522 523 525 526 526 528

Indoor Risk Assessment and Guideline Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.1 Basics of Risk Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2 Key Points and Process of an Health Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3 Values for Assessing Indoor Air Contamination . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3.1 Mandatory Values (Limit Values) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3.2 Toxicologically Based Guideline Values . . . . . . . . . . 10.3.3 Reference Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

539 540 543 546 546 548 569 572

10

. . . . . . . .

About the Author

Hermann Fromme is a professor at the Institute and Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, University Hospital, Ludwig-MaximiliansUniversity Munich (LMU), Germany. He started his professional career by studying social sciences at the University of Göttingen and completed his MD degree at the LMU and the Freie Universität Berlin. After holding various management positions in environmental health departments of the Berlin Senate Department for Social Affairs and Health, he was head of the Institute for Environmental Analysis and Human Toxicology in Berlin. Subsequently, Professor Fromme was head of the Department of Chemical Safety and Toxicology of the Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority. His work focuses in particular on the identification of chemicals in the environmental media and in humans as well as on the performance of health-related risk assessments. This has resulted in numerous scientific articles, particularly in the fields of exposure science, indoor air contaminants, human biomonitoring, health effects, and regulatory aspects of pollutants.

xix

Chapter 1

Indoor Environment: Background Information

Contents 1.1 Indoor Environmental Quality and Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2 Indoor Climate, Comfort, and Climate Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3 Chemical Reactions in Indoor Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4 Humans as a Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5 Key Points for the Sampling of Indoor Pollutants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6 Measures to Improve Indoor Air Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7 Important Information Options on the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

3 7 11 13 16 22 26 27

Abstract Indoor environmental quality (IEQ), often shortened indoor air quality, is characterized by the spatial and temporal variability of pollutants, physical and biological factors in the various indoor spaces, as well as the thermal and structural conditions of the building, environmental influences, and also by the behavior and activities of the room users. This chapter provides an initial overview of basic aspects of the relationship between IEQ and health especially in schools. In addition, the so-called sick building syndrome is explained in more detail, which is a buildingrelated health disorder that summarizes non-specific indoor-related health problems for both groups of people and individuals in commercial, public, and private buildings. Moreover, this chapter aims to present basic effects of indoor climate on our well-being indoors and discusses the effects of the dramatic climate change and its impact on human health. Due to the very often high temporal and spatial variability of indoor conditions complex chemical formation and transformation processes occur in this microenvironment. This includes processes of deposition on the room surfaces and partly reaction with the surfaces, re-release to the room air, but also transformation of substances and new formation of the so-called secondary organic aerosols (SOA). Although these processes are not yet fully understood due to their diversity, they may be relevant to the exposure of the indoor room users. It is of particular importance that indoor sampling and measurements should only ever be carried out with a clear question in mind and a defined measurement plan.

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 H. Fromme, Indoor Air Quality, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-40078-0_1

1

2

1 Indoor Environment: Background Information

With this in mind, the different sampling techniques and more new passive sampler devices like the wristband technology were discussed in brief. There is a large body of scientific publications, especially on the subject of ventilation of indoor spaces. The focus is on ventilation and air purification methods, but here only a first overview can be given and reference is made to more detailed literature. Keywords Indoor Environmental Quality · IEQ · Health effects · Sick Building Syndrome · SBS · Indoor climate · Well-being indoors · Climate change · Heat waves · Secondary organic aerosols · SOA · Sampling techniques · VOC · SVOC · PM · Wristband · Air purification Changing lifestyles and working habits have led to a situation in industrialized countries where up to 90% of our daily activities are spent inside buildings, where we can be exposed to a large number of chemical, physical, and biological factors, some of which are harmful to health. Uncontaminated indoor air is therefore of great importance to the health of the individual and the population. However, this is in contrast to our often incomplete knowledge of the exposure situation in this area of life. While we often have a large database with a high temporal and spatial resolution in outdoor air due to measuring stations, measuring programs, and research projects, this does not apply to indoor air. From not only a health protection point of view, but also a prevention point of view, this situation is unsatisfactory. In the past, this lack of reliable data has repeatedly led to measures being taken even though the technical basis for them was hardly available. Another drawback is the extensive lack of legally binding regulations on health protection and prevention from exposure in indoor living spaces, especially for public facilities such as schools and daycare centers. This is also surprising because it has long been known that indoor air quality in classrooms, for example, can adversely affect the well-being and health of children. Children are a particularly sensitive group because their lungs, immune systems, and detoxification capabilities are still developing. Also, due to, for example, their higher activity and breathing rate, they are relatively exposed to a higher dose of pollutants than adults. A crucial issue in maintaining and promoting the health of the population is therefore the air quality of our indoor spaces. For this reason, this problem is also highly relevant for political decision-makers. Overall, the term “indoor space” is understood to mean very different types of rooms. In this paper, reference is made to the following definitions: – Apartments with living rooms, bedrooms, craft rooms, sports rooms, basements, kitchens, and bathrooms. – Workrooms or workplaces in buildings (e.g., offices, salesrooms) that are not subject to occupational health and safety controls concerning air pollutants. – Public buildings such as hospitals, schools, kindergartens, gymnasiums, libraries, restaurants, theaters, cinemas, and other function rooms. – Passenger compartments of motor vehicles and all means of public transport.

1.1

Indoor Environmental Quality and Health

3

It should be noted here that for workrooms and industrial spaces the requirements according to the Workplace Ordinances must be considered. In principle, rooms in workplaces (such as offices) are considered to be indoor rooms in the sense of the above definition if the pollutants occurring there are not used directly as working substances.

1.1

Indoor Environmental Quality and Health

The central concept linking indoor air pollution and health is indoor environmental quality (IEQ). It is characterized not only by the spatial and temporal variability of gaseous and particulate pollutants, the physical factors (e.g., noise, light), the biological factors (e.g., molds), the thermal and structural conditions as well as the environmental influences resulting from the location of the object, but also by the behavior and activities of the users (e.g., cooking, heating). Against the background of these diverse influencing factors, it becomes understandable that the relationship between IEQ and health is also an extremely complex one and cannot be explained by one factor alone in any case. In the individual substance-related chapters, the most important health aspects are therefore briefly described and important literature references are given. Several reviews have also examined in detail the state of scientific knowledge of the relationship between indoor environmental quality and health (Daisey et al. 2003; Hulin et al. 2012; Salthammer et al. 2016; Fisk 2018; Chithra and Shiva Nagendra 2018; Fisk et al. 2019; Tran et al. 2020; Manisalidis et al. 2020; Palacios et al. 2021; Sadrizadeh et al. 2022; Kumar et al. 2020). In addition, a National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) working group assessed study evidence in an extensive process that reviewed over 33,000 references on the topic of exposure to indoor pollutants and health effects (NICE 2020). Associations between individual and building characteristics and exposure situation with health effects were estimated. As a result, pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide, volatile organic compounds (VOC), particulate matter, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), as well as biological factors such as molds and inhalation allergens were found to be associated with various respiratory, cardiovascular, and neurological symptoms. However, the committee also clearly points out the limited power of the studies, particularly because of methodological limitations. Basically, it must be taken into account that buildings and the people living and working in them can never be seen separately from their social references and living environment. AlWaer et al. (2021), for example, introduced the term “unhealthy neighborhood syndrome” that illustrates how seemingly separate issues in urban design can help improve living conditions and health through an integrated program. Four key factors that influence human health in neighborhoods can be named: urban density, green space, movement (e.g., modal split), and housing.

4

1.1.1

1

Indoor Environment: Background Information

Indoor Air Quality and Health in Schools

Overall, numerous studies have also shown that IEQ problems like moisture, mold damage, improper ventilation, and unsatisfactory temperature conditions in schools are associated with increased reporting of respiratory symptoms among pupils. Particularly with the beginning of the 2000s, extensive studies have been conducted across countries in Europe in the school environment that have demonstrated a link between indoor air quality and various health effects, especially respiratory symptoms and mucosal irritation. For example, the HESE (Health Effects of School Environment) study, a multinational cross-sectional study conducted in five European countries in 2004–2005, included 654 children from 46 schools (HESE 2006). The multiple logistic regression model showed significant association between elevated CO2 concentration (>1000 ppm per 100 ppm increase) and dry cough at night (OR = 2.99; 95% CI: 1.65–5.44) and rhinitis (OR = 2.07; 95% CI: 1.14–3.73) when adjusted for age, gender, passive smoke exposure at home, and PM10 (>50 μg/m3). The School Environment and Respiratory Health of Children (SEARCH) project studied approximately 60 schools with around 6000 children from six European countries in 2006–2009 (Csobod et al. 2010). In addition, the 2011–2012 Schools Indoor Pollution and Health: Observatory Network in Europe (SINPHONIE) study examined a total of 5175 children and 1223 teachers attending 340 classrooms in 23 European countries (Csobod et al. 2014). Main findings are that the prevalence of diagnosed asthma, nasal allergy, and eczema was 8%, 9% and 17%, respectively, and that among all schoolchildren the commonest recent (