Measurements of major VOCs released into the closed cabin environment of different automobiles under various engine and ventilation scenarios.
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in automobile cabins were measured quantitatively to describe their emission characteristics in relation to various idling scenarios using three used automobiles (compact, intermediate sedan, and large sedan) under three different idling conditions ([1] cold engine off and ventilation off, [2] exterior air ventilation with idling warm engine, and [3] internal air recirculation with idling warm engine). The ambient air outside the vehicle was also analyzed as a reference. A total of 24 VOCs (with six functional groups) were selected as target compounds. Accordingly, the concentration of 24 VOC quantified as key target compounds averaged 4.58 ± 3.62 ppb (range: 0.05 (isobutyl alcohol) ∼ 38.2 ppb (formaldehyde)). Moreover, if their concentrations are compared between different automobile operational modes: the 'idling engine' levels (5.24 ± 4.07) was 1.3-5 times higher than the 'engine off' levels (4.09 ± 3.23) across all 3 automobile classes. In summary, automobile in-cabin VOC emissions are highly contingent on changes in engine and ventilation modes.
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seoul, 133-791, South Korea. Electronic address: kkim61@hanyang.ac.kr.
Ki-Hyun
KH
Kim
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seoul, 133-791, South Korea.
Jan E
JE
Szulejko
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seoul, 133-791, South Korea.
Hyo-Jae
HJ
Jo
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seoul, 133-791, South Korea.
Min-Hee
MH
Lee
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seoul, 133-791, South Korea.
Yong-Hyun
YH
Kim
Department of Environment and Energy at Sejong University, Seoul, 05006, South Korea.
Eilhann
E
Kwon
Department of Environmental Science, Fukuoka Women's University, Higashi-Ku, Fukuoka, 813-8529, Japan.
Chang-Jin
CJ
Ma
Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, 110 016, India.
Pawan
P
Kumar
D000397:Air Pollution / Q000032:analysis*; D001336:Automobiles; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005557:Formaldehyde; D006801:Humans; D001335:Vehicle Emissions / Q000032:analysis*; D014691:Ventilation; D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds / Q000032:analysis*
D001335:Vehicle Emissions; D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds; D005557:Formaldehyde
Cabin air; Engine running mode; Internal air circulation; Static vehicle; VOC