Results of the air quality measurements in our office premises on New Year’s Eve 2019 / 2020
On New Year’s Eve, 31/12/2019, and New Year’s Day, 01/01/2020, we set up a fine dust sensor to monitor air quality at Keizer Karelpark Oost in the centre of Amstelveen, the Netherlands, to measure the effects of fireworks on local air quality. At the same time, air quality was also monitored in our offices in an industrial estate in the south-west of Amstelveen.
Besides temperature and humidity, PM1, PM2.5, PM10 and TSP (total particulate matter) were measured.
PM concentrations in the office air reached their first small peak around 21:00 and their second, clear peak at 03:30 in the morning with almost 120 μg/m³.
Conclusion: fireworks activities at the turn of the year affect the air quality in the office and similar constructed private dwellings drastically.
After actively measuring particulate matter in Keizer Karelpark Oost (KKP Oost) during a measurement project at the turn of the year 2019 / 2020, we now wanted to know if the New Year’s Eve fireworks also had an impact on the indoor air quality of our office. Since the windows are not 100% tight, there was a suspicion that some fine dust from the outside air could get in and negatively affect the air quality.
For more information on the effects of particulate matter on our bodies, see the post Air Quality Measurements on New Year’ s Eve 2019 / 2020.
Our indoor air quality monitor monitors PM1, PM2.5, PM10 and TSP (total particulate matter) as standard, as well as temperature, relative humidity and barometric pressure.
As can be seen in Figure 1, at the beginning of the day the concentrations of all fine dust fractions were below 6 μg/m³, which corresponds to excellent air quality. Around 21:00 there was a first peak in concentrations with 33 μg/m³, 47 μg/m³, 61 μg/m³ and 63 μg/m³ for the fractions PM1, PM2.5, PM10 and TSP. Concentrations decreased by a good 10-20 μg/m³ until they rose sharply again from midnight to reach the peak of the night around 03:30, with levels of 65 μg/m³, 97 μg/m³, 110 μg/m³ and 119 μg/m³ for the fractions PM1, PM2.5, PM10 and TSP, respectively. Even later in the day, dust concentrations did not go below 25 μg/m³, which corresponds to the WHO guideline value for PM2.5!
In addition to the PM concentrations in the office, Figure 2 also shows the PM2.5 concentrations at our other measurement location, KKP Oost. At both measuring points there is a first concentration peak after 21:00 and one after 03:30! Only the setting off of fireworks at midnight is not reflected in the records at the office. The reason for this could be that there are only businesses in the immediate vicinity of the office, but no private houses, where most fireworks are set off.
Conclusion: We were very surprised how much the fireworks activities at the turn of the year affect the air quality in the office. Throughout the evening and well into the night, PM2.5 concentrations were far above the guideline and limit values of the WHO and the European Union (25 μg/m³ each). It can be assumed that in residential buildings with similarly poorly sealed windows and doors, concentrations of particulate matter can be hazardous to health.
Do you need indoor or ambient dust measurements or a complete indoor air quality assessment? Don’t hesitate to contact us!
E-mail: info@aristoteles-consulting.com
Phone: +31 (0)85 200 7150