If you are seeing this message, you may be experiencing temporary network problems. Please wait a few minutes and refresh the page. If the problem persists, you may wish to report it to your local Network Manager.
It is also possible that your web browser is not configured or not able to display style sheets. In this case, although the visual presentation will be degraded, the site should continue to be functional. We recommend using the latest version of Microsoft or Mozilla web browser to help minimise these problems.
Wiley InterScience | ||||||
  Indoor AirVolume 10 Issue 4, Pages 269 - 288 Published Online: 24 Dec 2001 2007 The Authors Journal compilation 2007 Blackwell Munksgaard Published on behalf of the International Society of Indoor Air Quality and Climate
Abstract | Full Text: PDF (Size: 324K) | Related Articles | Citation Tracking  Ozone in Indoor Environments: Concentration and Chemistry + Telcordia Technologies, 331 Newman Springs Rd., Red Bank, NJ 07701, USA, Fax: +1 732 758 2804, e-mail: cweschle@telcordia.com Copyright © Munksgaard 2000 KEYWORDS Ozone • I/O ratio • Indoor chemistry • Aldehydes • Particulates • Free radicals Abstract
Abstract The concentration of indoor ozone depends on a number of factors, including the outdoor ozone concentration, air exchange rates, indoor emission rates, surface removal rates, and reactions between ozone and other chemicals in the air. Outdoor ozone concentrations often display strong diurnal variations, and this adds a dynamic excitation to the transport and chemical mechanisms at play. Hence, indoor ozone concentrations can vary significantly from hour-to-hour, day-to-day, and season-to-season, as well as from room-to-room and structure-to- structure. Under normal conditions, the half-life of ozone indoors is between 7 and 10 min and is determined primarily by surface removal and air exchange. Although reactions between ozone and most other indoor pollutants are thermodynamically favorable, in the majority of cases they are quite slow. Rate constants for reactions of ozone with the more commonly identified indoor pollutants are summarized in this article. They show that only a small fraction of the reactions occur at a rate fast enough to compete with air exchange, assuming typical indoor ozone concentrations. In the case of organic compounds, the "fast" reactions involve compounds with unsaturated carbon-carbon bonds. Although such compounds typically comprise less than 10% of indoor pollutants, their reactions with ozone have the potential to be quite significant as sources of indoor free radicals and multifunctional (−C=O, −COOH, −OH) stable compounds that are often quite odorous. The stable compounds are present as both gas phase and condensed phase species, with the latter contributing to the overall concentration of indoor submicron particles. Indeed, ozone/alkene reactions provide a link between outdoor ozone, outdoor particles and indoor particles. Indoor ozone and the products derived from reactions initiated by indoor ozone are potentially damaging to both human health and materials; more detailed explication of these impacts is an area of active investigation. Practical Implications
Indoor ozone contributes to total ozone exposures, and reactions driven by indoor ozone produce submicron particles that contribute to total particulate exposures. Indoor ozone concentrations are highly variable, but can be reasonably estimated using available knowledge regarding the factors that influence these concentrations. Although ozone is a powerful oxidizing agent, indoor ozone should not be viewed as a means for eliminating other indoor chemical pollutants. Ozone reacts too slowly with most airborne pollutants for the process to be of practical significance. Ozone does react at a faster rate with a small subset of indoor pollutants, but the oxidation products are themselves potentially irritating to humans and damaging to materials. Received for review 12 February 2000. Accepted for publication 16 April 2000. | 
|
.gif)