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Supplemental Material, sj-pdf-1-lrt-10.1177_14771535211046521 for Lighting conditions in physiotherapy centres: A comparative field study by L Zaniboni, M Sarey Khanie, G Pernigotto, J Toftum, A Gasparella and BW Olesen in Lighting Research & Technology

This study aims to elucidate in greater detail the dermal uptake of nicotine from air or from nicotine-exposed clothes, which was demonstrated recently in a preliminary study. Six non-smoking participants were exposed to gaseous nicotine (between 236 and 304 mg/m³) over 5 hours while breathing clean air through a hood. Four of the participants wore only shorts and 2 wore a set of clean clothes. One week later, 2 of the bare-skinned participants were again exposed in the chamber, but they showered immediately after exposure instead of the following morning. The 2 participants who wore clean clothes on week 1 were now exposed wearing a set of clothes that had been exposed to nicotine. All urine was collected for 84 hours after exposure and analyzed for nicotine and its metabolites, cotinine and 3OH-cotinine. All participants except those wearing fresh clothes excreted substantial amounts of biomarkers, comparable to levels expected from inhalation intake. Uptake for 1 participant wearing exposed clothes exceeded estimated intake via inhalation by >50%. Biomarker excretion continued during the entire urine collection period, indicating that nicotine accumulates in the skin and is released over several days. Absorbed nicotine was significantly lower after showering in 1 subject but not the other. Differences in the normalized uptakes and in the excretion patterns were observed among the participants. The observed cotinine half-lives suggest that non-smokers exposed to airborne nicotine may receive a substantial fraction through the dermal pathway. Washing skin and clothes exposed to nicotine may meaningfully decrease exposure.

Benzophenone-3 (also known as BP-3 or oxybenzone) is added to sunscreens, plastics, and some coatings to filter UV radiation. The suspected endocrine disruptor BP-3 has been detected in the air and settled dust of homesand is expected to redistribute from its original sources to other indoor compartments, including clothing. Given its physical and chemicalproperties, we hypothesized that dermal uptake from clothing could contribute to the body burden of this compound. First, cotton shirts were exposed to air at an elevated concentration of BP-3 for 32 days; the final air concentration was 4.4 mg/m³. Next, three participants wore the exposed shirts for 3 h. After 3 h of exposure, participants wore their usual clothing during the collection of urine samples for the next 48 h. Urine was analyzed for BP-3,a metabolite (BP-1), and six other UV filters. The rate of urinary excretion of the sum of BP-1 and BP-3 increased for all participants during and following the 3 hof exposure. The summed mass ofBP-1and BP-3 excreted during the first 24 h attributable to wearing exposed t-shirts were 12, 9.9, and 82mg for participants 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Analysis of these results, coupled with predictions of steady-state models, suggest that dermal uptake of BP-3 from clothing could meaningfully contribute to overall body burden.

Background: Fundamental considerations indicate that, for certain phthalate esters, dermal absorption from air is an uptake pathway that is comparable to or larger than inhalation. Yet this pathway has not been experimentally evaluated and has been largely overlooked when assessing uptake of phthalate esters. Objectives: This study investigated transdermal uptake, directly from air, of diethyl phthalate (DEP) and di(n-butyl) phthalate (DnBP) in humans. Methods: In a series of experiments, six human participants were exposed for six hours in a chamber containing deliberately elevated air concentrations of DEP and DnBP. The participants either wore a hood and breathed air with phthalate concentrations substantially below those in the chamber or did not wear a hood and breathed chamber air. All urinations were collected from initiation of exposure until 54 hours later. Metabolites of DEP and DnBP were measured in these samples and extrapolated to parent phthalate intakes, corrected for background and hood air exposures. Results: For DEP the median dermal uptake directly from air was 4.0 µg/(µg/m3 in air) compared with an inhalation intake of 3.8 µg/(µg/m3 in air). For DnBP the median dermal uptake from air was 3.1 µg/(µg/m3 in air) compared with an inhalation intake of 3.9 µg/(µg/m3 in air). Conclusions: This study shows that dermal uptake directly from air can be a meaningful exposure pathway for DEP and DnBP. For other semivolatile organic compounds (SVOCs) whose molecular weight and Kow are in the appropriate range, direct absorption from air is also anticipated to be significant.

The objective of this research was to study the effects of a moderate temperature drift on human thermal comfort, physiological responses, productivity and performance. A dynamic thermophysiological model was used to examine the possibility of simulating human thermal responses and thermal comfort under moderate transient conditions. To examine the influence of a moderate temperature ramp, a climate room set-up with experimental subjects was used. Eight subjects visited the climate room on two occasions: 1) exposure to a transient condition (a moderate temperature ramp) and 2) a steady temperature corresponding with a neutral thermal sensation (control situation). During the experiments both physiological responses and thermal sensation were measured. Productivity and performance were assessed with a ‘Remote Performance Measurement’ (RPM) method. Physiological and thermal sensation data indicate significant differences between the transient condition and the control situation. Productivity and performance tests show no significant changes between the two situations. Simulations obtained with the thermophysiological model were in good agreement with the measurements. Possible improvements of the performance and productivity tests and the thermophysiological model will be discussed.

Onderzoeken in kantoorgebouwen hebben aangetoond dat het hebben van persoonlijke controle over het binnenklimaat een positieve invloed heeft op comfort en productiviteit. Is dit effect toe te schrijven aan het verschil in behoefte van werknemers, of is alleen het gevoel van het hebben van controle al voldoende om een positieve invloed te hebben? Dit laboratoriumonderzoek richtte zich op die vraag. Het onderzoek maakt deel uit van het promotieonderzoek ‘Persoonlijke Beïnvloeding van het Binnenklimaat in kantoorgebouwen’ van Atze Boerstra en uitgevoerd in samenwerking met de Technical University of Denmark.

The objective of this research was to study the effects of ageing and a moderate temperature drift on human thermal comfort, physiological responses and performance. A climate room set-up with experimental subjects in the age 67-73 was used to examine the effect of a moderate temperature ramp. Eight subjects were exposed to two conditions: (1) a steady temperature corresponding with a neutral thermal sensation (control situation) and (2) a transient condition (a moderate temperature ramp). During the experiments both physiological responses and thermal sensation were measured Performance was assessed with a ‘Remote Performance Measurement’ (RPM) method. Based on the physiological and thermal sensation data, the temperature changes were significant and noticeable for the subjects. The measured thermal sensation was in general lower than the predicted thermal sensation. Besides, a significant correlation between the extent of vasomotion and thermal sensation was found.

This study examined the formation and growth of secondary organic aerosols (SOA) generated when ozone was added to a 1 m(3) glass chamber that contained either pine shelving, oriented strand board (OSB), beech boards, or beach boards painted with an "eco" paint. The experiments were conducted at close to real-world conditions: the chamber was ventilated at similar to 0.5 air changes/h; the loadings (exposed surface of building materials to chamber volume) were in the range of 1-2.5 m(2) m(-3); and the initial O-3 concentrations were between 15 and 40 ppb. Throughout each experiment particles were measured with both a condensation nuclei counter and an optical counter, while terpenes Were measured before and after the ozone exposure period using sorbent tubes. The pine boards emitted primarily alpha-pinene and 3-carene and lesser amounts of 5 other terpenes; when 03 was introduced, the particle counts increased dramatically: the mass concentration reached similar to 15 mu g m(-3) at similar to 20 ppb O-3, and similar to 95 mu g m(-3) at similar to 40 ppb O-3. The OSB emitted primarily limonene and alpha-pinene. Although the particle counts increased when O-3 was introduced, the increase was not as large as anticipated based on the terpene concentrations. The beech boards emitted negligible quantities of terpenes, and the introduction of O-3 resulted in almost no increase in the particle concentration. Beech boards painted with an "eco" paint emitted large amounts of limonene and lesser amounts of carvone; upon introduction of O-3 the particle counts increased sharply with the mass concentration reaching similar to 20 mu g m(-3) at similar to 15 ppb O-3 and similar to 160 mu g m(-3) at similar to 35 ppb O-3. These experiments demonstrate that the emission of terpenes and potential generation of SOA varies greatly among different types of wood and pressed wood materials. in the case of the pine boards and painted beech boards, the SOA concentrations generated at modest O-3 concentrations approach or exceed current guideline levels for PM2.5 established by the US EPA and the World Health Organization.

The threat of a new pandemic has forced the WHO to publish preparedness plans. Although WHO recognized the effect of airborne transmission of the causative agent, they did not attempt to include feasible measures for indoor environmental control as yet. The efficacy of indoor humidity control compared to other air related measures such as ultra violet irradiation, portable HEPA filtering and increased ventilation rate has been studied in order to slow down infection spread. This study is limited to homes. A combination of the Wells-Riley equation and the Nazaroff's equation was used to compute the effect of each measure in order to decrease the infection risk. An increase of ventilation and the use of portable HEPA filters were not effective. Although ultra violet radiation appeared more effective than humidification control, the latter is most feasible.

This paper presents the pre-investigation for a sensitivity analysis of design and use parameters of an operating room on the spread of airborne bacteria. The sensitivity analysis will use CFD (computational fluid dynamics) simulations to evaluate the airflow and spread of bacteria in a room. The pre-investigation consists of a grid study and an evaluation of two different methods of performing the sensitivity analysis.

Traffic is considered the main producer of fine particulate matter. The HVAC system should protect building occupants but in practice it retains less than half of these particulates. We studied the effect of extra HVAC maintenance on indoor air quality. To this end particulate matter was assessed at workplaces in a mechanically ventilated Dutch office building, and its environs. No humidification of the indoor air took place. Indoor small particle concentrations are strongly correlated with outdoor measurements (rho=0.93, p

Office buildings with HVAC systems consistently report Sick Building Symptoms that are derived from microbial growth. We used the HACCP methodology to find the main critical control points (CCPs) for microbial management of HVAC systems in temperate climates. Desk research revealed relative humidity (RH) as a main limiting factor, with fungi needing at least 65% RH and bacteria 91%. Particle deposition inside the HVAC system provides the necessary growth substrate. Filters exposed to outdoor climatic conditions are vulnerable to fungal growth 80% of the time in a year, making them the first main CCP. High RH is also found at the cooling section (the 2nd main CCP). Particle deposition is highest in bends of the ductwork (3rd main CCP). We recommend microbial monitoring and controlling of the humidity level at these 3 CCPs to manage microbial growth in HVAC systems.