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The relationships between personal PM exposures for elderly populations and indoor and outdoor concentrations for three retirement center scenarios

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 11, pages 103–115 (2001)Cite this article

Abstract

Personal exposures, indoor and outdoor concentrations, and questionnaire data were collected in three retirement center settings, supporting broader particulate matter (PM)-health studies of elderly populations. The studies varied geographically and temporally, with populations studied in Baltimore, MD in the summer of 1998, and Fresno, CA in the winter and spring of 1999. The sequential nature of the studies and the relatively rapid review of the mass concentration data after each segment provided the opportunity to modify the experimental designs, including the information collected from activity diary and baseline questionnaires and influencing factors (e.g., heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) system operation, door and window openings, air exchange rate) measurements. This paper highlights both PM2.5 and PM10 personal exposure data and interrelationships across the three retirement center settings, and identifies the most probable influencing factors. The current limited availability of questionnaire results, and chemical speciation data beyond mass concentration for these studies, provided only limited capability to estimate personal exposures from models and apportion the personal exposure collections to their sources. The mean personal PM2.5 exposures for the elderly in three retirement centers were found to be consistently higher than the paired apartment concentrations by 50% to 68%, even though different facility types and geographic locations were represented. Mean personal-to-outdoor ratios were found to 0.70, 0.82, and 1.10, and appeared to be influenced by the time doors and windows were open and aggressive particle removal by the HVAC systems. Essentially identical computed mean PM2.5 personal clouds of 3 μg/m3 were determined for two of the studies. The proposed significant contributing factors to these personal clouds were resuspended particles from carpeting, collection of body dander and clothing fibers, personal proximity to open doors and windows, and elevated PM levels in nonapartment indoor microenvironments.

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Acknowledgements

This work has been funded in part by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under contract 68-D5-0040, work assignments 29, 37 and 41, to the Research Triangle Institute. It has been subjected to Agency Review for policy and approved for peer-reviewed journal submittal. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation for use. The dedicated field sample and data collections by Randy Newsome, Don Whitaker, Sanjay Natarajan, Doug VanOsdell, Eric Meyers, and Jennifer Douglas are greatly appreciated, as well as the meticulous gravimetric filter analyses of Kaemi Combs and Tricia Webber — all from the Research Triangle Institute. The helpful technical assistance and PFT sample analyses by Russ Dietz at Brookhaven National Laboratories are greatly appreciated. The determined logistical and administrative support provided by Ross Highsmith at EPA, without which this project would not have been completed, are greatly appreciated.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Triangle Institute, P.O. Box 12194, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, 27709

    CHARLES E RODES & PHILIP A LAWLESS

  2. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Exposure Research Laboratory, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, 27711

    GARY F EVANS, LINDA S SHELDON, RONALD W WILLIAMS & ALAN F VETTE

  3. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, 27711

    JOHN P CREASON & DEBRA WALSH

Authors
  1. CHARLES E RODES
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  2. PHILIP A LAWLESS
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  3. GARY F EVANS
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  4. LINDA S SHELDON
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  5. RONALD W WILLIAMS
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  6. ALAN F VETTE
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  7. JOHN P CREASON
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  8. DEBRA WALSH
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Correspondence to CHARLES E RODES.

Additional information

Presented at AWMA PM2000 Conference, Charleston, SC, January 2000.

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RODES, C., LAWLESS, P., EVANS, G. et al. The relationships between personal PM exposures for elderly populations and indoor and outdoor concentrations for three retirement center scenarios. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 11, 103–115 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.jea.7500155

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