Characteristics of the suspended fraction present in the indoor environment of elderly care and child care facilities
According to information made available by the World Health Organisation, polluted air, both atmospheric and indoor, is responsible for seven million premature deaths worldwide. In recent years, there has been a significant increase in public awareness of the main factors negatively affecting air quality, i.e. particulate matter, sulfur and nitrogen oxides, and volatile organic compounds. However, there is still a perception in society that the greatest risk to human health comes from breathing ambient air, ignoring the importance of the quality of indoor air, which can be polluted to a similar degree or even greater than outdoor air. Also noteworthy is the fact that studies have observed a positive correlation between the spread of the Sars-Cov-2 virus and air pollution by suspended fractions. It is suspected that the particles present in the air are the "carrier" of the virus and, in addition, may cause inflammation in the lung cells, thus increasing the risk of infection and the likelihood of a severe course of COVID-19 disease. Two subgroups can be distinguished in the population that are particularly susceptible to the adverse effects of polluted air on the human body. These are children and the elderly. The main objective of the project is a comprehensive assessment of the degree of exposure of children and the elderly to particulate matter suspended in the indoor air of the above-mentioned facilities, especially those invisible to the "naked eye", but thus posing the greatest threat to human health. The study sites located in different regions of Poland will be selected on the basis of the degree of urbanization, forest cover, and air pollution. The results obtained in the framework of the planned research work will undoubtedly contribute to broadening social awareness of the importance of indoor air quality and its impact on human health, especially in the case of indoor environments, which should be characterized by the best possible living conditions, such as care facilities for children and the elderly. It is planned to popularise the research work through a website dedicated to the project.
Details
- Financial Program Name:
- OPUS
- Organization:
- Narodowe Centrum Nauki (NCN) (National Science Centre)
- Agreement:
- UMO-2021/43/B/NZ7/02299 z dnia 2022-07-07
- Realisation period:
- 2022-07-07 - 2025-07-06
- Project manager:
- prof. dr hab. inż. Bożena Zabiegała
- Team members:
-
- Investigator dr inż. Małgorzata Rutkowska
- Investigator dr hab. inż. Mariusz Marć
- Investigator dr inż. Natalia Jatkowska
- Realised in:
- Department of Analytical Chemistry
- Request type:
- National Research Programmes
- Domestic:
- Domestic project
- Verified by:
- Gdańsk University of Technology
Papers associated with that project
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