Emission Rates of Bio-Based Building Materials, a Method Description for Qualifying and Quantifying Voc Emissions

17 Pages Posted: 16 Jun 2023

See all articles by Janneke de Kort

Janneke de Kort

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Marcel Loomans

Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE)

Florent Gauvin

Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE)

Jos Brouwers

Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE)

Abstract

Biobased insulation materials offer opportunities to use vapor-open building constructions. Such constructions allow direct interaction between the biobased material and the indoor environment. This interaction raises questions about indoor air quality concerning volatile organic compounds (VOCs). This study presents results for the VOC emissions from biobased materials.  It consists of two parts: 1) qualification of VOC emissions (compounds) from several biobased and non-biobased building materials, and 2) quantification of VOC emissions (emission rate) from expanded cork (biobased), particle board (semi-biobased), and EPS insulation. By quantifying the emission rate, the exposure to the released VOC emissions at room temperature in a standardized room can be compared to health limit requirements. Gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) is used to derive the individual VOC emissions and the Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOC) from these materials. For qualification, two different sampling techniques are used in which temperature is introduced as a variable to investigate its effect on the type of compounds emitted. For quantification, the toluene equivalent approach is compared to the group equivalent approach. From the analyses it is concluded that temperature has an effect on the type of VOC compounds emitted from (biobased) materials. Results from the quantification indicate that expanded cork and particle board emit no harmful substances at a level that can affect human health. For EPS insulation, elevated levels of benzene were found to exceed healthy limits. The toluene equivalent approach for quantifying the emission, generally, underestimates the rate as compared to the more accurate group equivalent approach.

Keywords: Volatile organic compounds from biobased materials, Indoor air quality, Health effects emission rates, TVOC, Single VOC

Suggested Citation

de Kort, Janneke and Loomans, Marcel and Gauvin, Florent and Brouwers, Jos, Emission Rates of Bio-Based Building Materials, a Method Description for Qualifying and Quantifying Voc Emissions. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4482335 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4482335

Janneke De Kort (Contact Author)

affiliation not provided to SSRN ( email )

No Address Available

Marcel Loomans

Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE) ( email )

PO Box 513
Eindhoven, 5600 MB
Netherlands

Florent Gauvin

Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE) ( email )

Jos Brouwers

Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE) ( email )

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
17
Abstract Views
112
PlumX Metrics