1/22 Indoor air purification by plants Majbrit Dela Cruz.

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Indoor air purification by plants

Majbrit Dela Cruz

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Outline My background

Background of the topic

Plants purify the air

– in closed chambers

– in offices

What will I be investigating?

My work so far

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My background

4+4 PhD student 2010-2014

BSc in horticulture

Main supervisor: Renate Müller (IJØ)

Co-supervisor: Jan H. Christensen (IGM)

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Background of the topic

Time spend indoors: up to 90%

Amount of air breathed per day: 21-23m3

Indoor air can be more polluted than outdoor air

Sick-building-syndrome

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Sources of indoor air pollutants

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Plants purify the air – in closed chambers

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Plants purify the air – in closed chambers

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Plants purify the air – in closed chambers

Removal of VOCs is dependent on

Light intensity

VOC concentration

VOC and plant species

VOCs being single or in mixture

Micro organisms in the soil

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Light intensity

Increasing light intensity generally results in increased VOC removal

Not always so at low light intensity

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VOC concentration

In absolute terms:

Increasing VOC concentration results in increased VOC removal

In relative terms:

Increasing VOC concentration results in decreased VOC removal

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VOC concentration

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VOC and plant species

VOC removal differs with VOC and plant species

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VOCs in mixturesRemoval of a single VOC is different from removal of VOCs in mixtures

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Micro organisms in the soil

Can account for nearly all VOC removal but plants are important for maintenance

Removal by aboveground part vs. belowground part is 1:1 at day and 1:11 at night

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Plants purify the air – in offices

Only few studies

Plants can to some extend reduce VOC levels

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Plants purify the air – in offices

Air-conditioned Naturally ventilated

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C-metabolism

Flowering

VOCs being singleor in mixtures

Soil microorganisms

CO2

Temperature

Light

Watering statusof the plant

VOC removal by plants

What will I be investigating

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My work so far

Light: 45mol/m2/s

Temperature: 20°C

Light/dark: 12/12h

System setup

Adsor-bent tubes

CO2 measurement

Pollutant chamber

CO2

Compressor

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My work so far System setup

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My work so far Removal of toluene by Hedera helix

80% removed after 8 hours

= 60g/m2/h

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http://www.pension-emma.it/willkommen.asp

http://www.agrocangall.com/pages/frame_e.htm

http://www.vitality4life.com.au/clean-air/why-purchase-an-air-filter/

http://kontorindretning.blogspot.com/

http://www.houseofplants.co.uk/healthytop10.htm

http://www.onetrendblog.com/410/plant-powered-air-cleaner/

http://www.ecosignal.org/?p=4952

http://www.nikibrown.com/designoblog/2009/11/01/funny-strang-japanese-inventions/

http://www.hylandseeds.com/agronomy_facts.php

http://www.dreamstime.com/cartoon-virus-germ-bacteria--image3234482

Picture references

http://www.engrish.com

http://www.ambius.com/ambius-catalogs/tabletop-credenza-plants/hedera-helix/index.html