Clearing the air: impacts of plants on air particulates in passive ventilation
| dc.contributor.author | Braun, Elise | |
| dc.contributor.author | Cooper, Thomas | |
| dc.contributor.author | Surguine, Marsie | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2020-02-26T19:31:15Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2020-02-26T19:31:15Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2019 | |
| dc.description | 23 pages | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | The presence of air contaminants, such as fine particulate matter generated by transportation and other outdoor sources is linked to adverse effects on human health such as asthma, headaches, and irritation in the eyes (Kluizenaar, et al. 2016). To improve the health and wellbeing of its employees and inform its professional practice, the architecture firm Opsis engaged with University of Oregon architecture students to study the presence and low-cost interventions to reduce air contaminants in their passively ventilated office space. The study consisted of a multi-phased experiment in the open office, testing the effect of plants on air particulates derived from outdoor sources measured at PM2.5 and PM10. The objectives of the study were to determine if there was a reduction in the number of air particulate levels measured after the intervention of plants. However, our experiments showed that plants were not able to significantly reduce particle counts through natural ventilation. Our data did support that increasing the plant density for the Sanseveria robusta (Snake plants), as well as combining both the Sanseveria robusta (Snake plants) and the Dracaena Marginata Colorama (Dracena) together, did have a slight impact on particle count reduction. The study also revealed other findings. One finding is that interior pollutants were more prevalent than exterior pollutants, indicating interior sources of pollutants and the recommendation for future testing to location the interior sources. Data collected from the exterior alludes to wind direction playing a role in the intake of outdoor pollutants into the indoors, but further study, especially by season, is recommended. In a lab test, moistening plants reduced particle counts more than dry plants, but scalability and practicality at an office scale is questionable. Overall, the data shows the average particulate counts are within acceptable EPA ranges. But, research literature indicates limits may not be low enough as health is impacted at levels lower than EPA limits. A final take-away is that we should continue to explore ways to improve outdoor air quality. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/1794/25201 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
| dc.publisher | University of Oregon, Dept. of Architecture, Portland Program | en_US |
| dc.rights | Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0-US | en_US |
| dc.subject | indoor air quality | en_US |
| dc.subject | indoor plants | en_US |
| dc.subject | natural ventilation | en_US |
| dc.subject | sustainability | en_US |
| dc.title | Clearing the air: impacts of plants on air particulates in passive ventilation | en_US |
| dc.type | Other | en_US |