Chemical Engineering / Kimya Mühendisliği
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/11147/14
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Article Citation - WoS: 45Citation - Scopus: 48Halogenated Volatile Organic Compounds in Chlorine-Bleach Household Products and Implications for Their Use(Elsevier Ltd., 2014) Odabaşı, Mustafa; Elbir, Tolga; Dumanoğlu, Yetkin; Sofuoğlu, Sait CemilIt was recently shown that substantial amounts of halogenated volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are formed in chlorine-bleach-containing household products as a result of reactions of sodium hypochlorite with organic product components. Use of these household products results in elevated indoor air halogenated VOC concentrations. Halogenated VOCs in several chlorine-bleach-containing household products (plain, n=9; fragranced, n=4; and surfactant-added, n=29) from Europe and North America were measured in the present study. Chloroform and carbon tetrachloride were the dominating compounds having average concentrations of 9.5±29.0 (average±SD) and 23.2±44.3 (average±SD) mgL-1, respectively. Halogenated VOC concentrations were the lowest in plain bleach, slightly higher in fragranced products and the highest in the surfactant-added products. Investigation of the relationship between the halogenated VOCs and several product ingredients indicated that chlorinated VOC formation is closely related to product composition. Indoor air concentrations from the household use of bleach products (i.e., bathroom, kitchen, and hallway cleaning) were estimated for the two dominating VOCs (chloroform and carbon tetrachloride). Estimated indoor concentrations ranged between 0.5 and 1030 (34±123, average±SD) μgm-3 and 0.3-1124 (82±194, average±SD) μgm-3 for chloroform and carbon tetrachloride, respectively, indicating substantial increases compared to background. Results indicated that indoor air concentrations from surfactant-added products were significantly higher (p<0.01) than other categories. The highest concentrations were from the use of surfactant-added bleach products for bathroom cleaning (92±228 and 224±334μgm-3, average±SD for chloroform and carbon tetrachloride, respectively). Associated carcinogenic risks from the use of these products were also estimated. The risk levels may reach to considerably high levels for a significant portion of the population especially for those steadily using the surfactant-added bleach products. Based on the results of the present study, it could be recommended that if possible the use of chlorine bleach containing household products should be avoided. If they are to be used, plain products should be preferred since the chlorinated VOC content increase with the number and amount of additives.Article Citation - WoS: 163An Assessment of Indoor Air Concentrations and Health Risks of Volatile Organic Compounds in Three Primary Schools(Elsevier Ltd., 2011) Sofuoğlu, Sait Cemil; Aslan, Güler; İnal, Fikret; Sofuoğlu, AysunConcentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including formaldehyde, in classrooms, kindergartens, and outdoor playgrounds of three primary schools were measured in spring, winter, and fall terms in Izmir, Turkey. A health-risk assessment was conducted for odor detection, sensory irritation, chronic toxic effects, and cancer. Active sampling was applied for VOCs and formaldehyde on Tenax TA and DNPH tubes, respectively. VOCs were analyzed in a thermal desorption-GC-MS system. Formaldehyde analysis was performed using an HPLC instrument. Benzene, toluene, and formaldehyde were the most abundant compounds with 95th percentile indoor air concentrations of 29, 87, and 106μg/m3, respectively. Naphthalene and xylenes followed them with an order of magnitude lower concentrations. Two isomers of dichlorobenzene (1,3 and 1,4) were the other notable compounds. The concentrations were utilized to classify the indoor air pollutants with respect to potential health effects. In addition, carcinogenic and chronic toxic risks were estimated using Monte-Carlo simulation. Formaldehyde appears to be the most concerning pollutant with high chronic toxic and carcinogenic risk levels according to the health assessment followed by naphthalene, benzene, and toluene due to their chronic effects.Article Citation - WoS: 30Citation - Scopus: 34Polycyclic and Nitro Musks in Indoor Air: a Primary School Classroom and a Women's Sport Center(Blackwell Publishing, 2010) Sofuoğlu, Aysun; Kıymet, N.; Kavcar, Pınar; Sofuoğlu, Sait CemilIndoor air gas and particulate-phase samples (PM2.5) were collected from a primary school classroom and a women's sport center because children are one of the sensitive population subgroups and women are frequent users of personal care products in addition to the high level of activity in this specific microenvironment. PM2.5 was collected with a Harvard impactor, and polyurethane foam was used for the gas phase. Samples were ultrasonically extracted, concentrated, and analyzed with a GC-MS. The mean gas-phase concentrations in the classroom ranged from 0.12 ± 0.2 ng/m3 for MK to 267 ± 56 ng/m3 for HHCB, while it was from 0.08 ± 0.10 ng/m3 for AHMI to 144 ± 61 ng/m3 for HHCB in the sports center. Particulate-phase average concentrations in the sports center ranged from 0.22 ± 0.11 ng/m3 for ATII to 1.34 ± 071 ng/m3 for AHTN, while it ranged from 0.05 ± 0.02 ng/m3 (musk xylene) to 2.50 ± 0.94 ng/m3 (HHCB) in the classroom. Exposure-risk assessment showed that inhalation route is most probably far less significant than the dermal route; however, it should be noted that the exposure duration covered in this study was not the larger fraction of the dayArticle Citation - WoS: 37The Link Between Symptoms of Off Ice Building Occupants and In-Office Air Pollution: the Indoor Air Pollution Index(Blackwell Publishing, 2003) Sofuoğlu, Sait Cemil; Moschandreas, Demetrios J.The lack of an effective indoor air quality (IAQ) metric causes communication concerns among building tenants (the public),buildi ng managers (decision-makers),and IAQ investigators (engineers). The Indoor Air Pollution Index (IAPI) is developed for office buildings to bridge this communication discord. The index, simple and easily understood,employ s the range of pollutant concentrations and concentrations in the subject building to estimate a unitless single number,the IAPI,between 0 (lowest pollution level and best IAQ) and ten (highest pollution level and worst IAQ). The index provides a relative measure of indoor air pollution for office buildings and ranks office indoor air pollution relative to the index distribution of the US office building population. Furthermore,the index associates well with occupant symptoms,pe rcentage of occupants with persistent symptoms. A tree-structured method is utilized in conjunction with the arithmetic mean as the aggregation function. The hierarchical structure of the method renders not only one index value,but also several sub-index values that are critical in the study of an office air environment. The use of the IAPI for IAQ management is illustrated with an example. The decomposition of the index leads to the ranking of sampled pollutants by their relative contribution to the index and the identification of dominant pollutant(s). This information can be applied to design an effective strategy for reducing in-office air pollution.