Aldehydes measurements in public indoor environments in Palermo (Italy) using voltammetry.

Studies on indoor air quality are important since people spend more than 80% of life in confined environments, thus it is necessary to evaluate indoor contaminant concentrations and distributions for assessing total human exposure to them (Mannino and Orecchio, 2008; Orecchio, 2011). Aldehydes are indoor and outdoor chemical pollutants of particular interest due to their potential impact on health. Formaldehyde is usually the most abundant aldehyde in air and also the most studied since it is classified as human carcinogen. It is well known that formaldehyde is directly emitted from building materials, wood combustion, cigarette smoking, and is used as a bactericidal agent. One purpose of this research was to develop a reliable, economic, simple and fast method for the determination of formaldehyde and acetaldehyde in air. In this work, we use voltammetry to measure the concentrations of formaldehyde and acetaldehyde in indoor air. Aldehydes were determined in several public environments in Palermo University (libraries, studies, museum, laboratories, etc.). The mean concentrations of formaldehyde and acetaldehyde are respectively about 40 and 5µg/m3. References 1. Mannino M. R. and Orecchio S. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in indoor dust matter of Palermo (Italy) area: Extraction, GC–MS analysis, distribution and sources Atmospheric Environment 42 (2008) 1801-1817. 2. Orecchio S., Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in indoor emission from decorative candles Atmospheric Environment 45 (2011) 1888-1895.