Could BFFB mode breath aerosol play a role in H5N1 transmission?

Recent findings concerning exhaled aerosol size distributions and the regions in the respiratory tract in which they are generated could have significant implications for human to human spread of lower respiratory tract-specific infections. Even in healthy people, measurable quantities of aerosol are routinely generated from the Lower Respiratory Tract (LRT) during breathing(1-3). We have found that there at least three modes in the exhaled aerosol size distribution of healthy adults(4) (see Figure 1). These modes each have a characteristic size and arise from different parts of the respiratory tract. The respiratory bronchioles produce aerosol during breathing, the larynx during speech and the oral cavity also during speech. The model of the resulting droplet size distribution is therefore called the Bronchial Laryngeal Oral (B.L.O.) tri-modal model of expired aerosol.

School children’s personal exposure to ultrafine particles in urban environments

This work was motivated by the limited knowledge on personal exposure to ultrafine (UF) particles, and it quantifies school children’s personal exposure to UF particles, in terms of number, using Philips Aerasense Nano Tracers (NTs). This study is being conducted in conjunction with the “Ultrafine Particles from Traffic Emissions and Children’s Health (UPTECH)” project, which aims to determine the relationship between exposure to traffic related UF particles and children’s health (http://www.ilaqh.qut.edu.au/Misc/UPTECH%20 Home.htm). To achieve this, air quality and some health data are being collected at 25 schools within the Brisbane Metropolitan Area in Australia over two years. The school children’s personal exposure to UF particles in the first 17 schools are presented here. These schools were tested between Oct 2010 and Dec 2011. Data collection is expected to be complete by mid 2012.

The influence of oxygenated organic aerosols (OOA) and its volatile organic content on the oxidative potential of diesel particulate mater

Airborne particulate matter pollution is of concern for a number of reasons and has been widely recognised as an important risk factor to human health. A number of toxicological and epidemiological studies reported negative health effects on both respiratory and cardiovascular system. Despite the availability of a huge body of research, the underlying toxicological mechanisms by which particles induce adverse health effects are not yet entirely understood. The production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) has been shown to induce oxidative stress, which is proposed as a mechanism for many of the adverse health outcomes associated with exposure to particulate matter (PM). Therefore, it is crucial to introduce a technique that will allow rapid and routine screenings of the oxidative potential of PM.

Preliminary results on the characterisation of organic aerosols in urban schools by Aerosol Mass Spectrometry

Vehicle emissions have been linked to detrimental health effects with children thought to be more susceptible (See e.g., Ryan et al 2005). In an urban environment a major source of organic aerosols (OA) are vehicle emissions. The ambient concentration of OA is dynamic in nature and the use of an aerosol mass spectrometer can achieve the necessary temporal resolution to capture the daily variation of OA (Jimenez et al 2009). Currently there is a limited understanding of effects of long term exposure to traffic emissions on children’s health. In the present study, we used an aerosol mass spectrometer to monitor OA and determine children’s potential exposure at school to traffic emissions.In this paper, we present the preliminary results of this investigation. The study is a part of a larger project aimed at gaining a holistic picture of the exposure of children to traffic related pollutants, known as UPTECH (www.ilaqh.qut.edu.au/Misc/ UPTECH%20Home.htm).

Air pollution trends in four Australian cities

This study examined the long-term trends in four air pollutants in Australia’s four largest cities between 1996 and 2011. There were long-term improvements in carbon monoxide and sulfur dioxide. Particulate matter levels (PM10) remained relatively constant. Ozone levels increased in all four cities when including the influence of temperature, and levels are predicted to increase further because of climate change.

Can a “Blue Sky” return to Indian megacities?

Deterioration of air quality in Indian megacities (Delhi, Mumbai or Kolkata) is much more significant than that observed in the megacities of developed countries. Densely packed high-rise buildings restrict the self-cleaning capabilities of Indian megacities. Also, the ever growing number of on-road vehicles, resuspension of the dust, and anthropogenic activities exacerbate the levels of ambient air pollution, which is in turn breathed by urban dwellers. Pollution levels exceeding the standards on a regular basis often result in a notable increase in morbidity and mortality. This article discusses the challenges faced by Indian megacities in their quest for sustainable growth, without compromising the air quality and urban way of life.

Indoor aerosols : from personal exposure to risk assessment

Motivated by growing considerations of the scale, severity and risks associated with human exposure to indoor particulate matter, this work reviewed existing literature to: (i) identify state-of-the-art experimental techniques used for personal exposure assessment; (ii) compare exposure levels reported for domestic/school settings in different countries (excluding exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and particulate matter from biomass cooking in developing countries); (iii) assess the contribution of outdoor background vs indoor sources to personal exposure; and (iv) examine scientific understanding of the risks posed by personal exposure to indoor aerosols. Limited studies assessing integrated daily residential exposure to just one particle size fraction, ultrafine particles, show that the contribution of indoor sources ranged from 19-76%. This indicates a strong dependence on resident activities, source events and site specificity, and highlights the importance of indoor sources for total personal exposure. Further, it was assessed that 10-30% of the total burden-of-disease from particulate matter exposure was due to indoor generated particles, signifying that indoor environments are likely to be a dominant environmental factor affecting human health. However, due to challenges associated with conducting epidemiological assessments, the role of indoor generated particles has not been fully acknowledged, and improved exposure/risk assessment methods are still needed, together with a serious focus on exposure control.

Oceanografia UFBA : Desenvolvimento de Marca, Imagem e Identidade

A well-developed brand helps to establish a solid identity and creates support to an image that is coherent to the actual motivations in an institution. Educational institutions have inherent characteristics that are diverse from the other sort of institutions, mainly when the focus is set on its internal and external publics. Consequently, these institutions should deal with the development of their brand and identity system also in a different approach. This research aims to investigate the traditional methodology for brand and identity systems development and proposes some modifications in order to allow a broader inclusion of the stakeholders in the process. The implementation of the new Oceanography Course in the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) offered a unique opportunity to investigate and test these new strategies. In order to investigate and relate the image, identity, interaction and experience concepts through a participative methodology, this research project applies the new suggested strategies in the development of a brand and an identity system for the Oceanography Course in UFBA. Open surveys have been carried out between the alumni, lecturers and coordination body, in order to discover and establish a symbol for the course. The statistic analysis of the surveys’ results showed clear aesthetic preferences to some icons and colours to represent the course. The participative methodology celebrated, in this project, a democratization of the generally expert-centred brand development process.

Green office interiors in Australia : lessons learnt

In 2003, the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) launched their Green Star rating tools for various types of buildings in order to promote green building practice in Australia. Of these, the Green Star-Office Interior rating tool is designed for building owners, tenants and interior designers to assess the environmental impact of an interior fitout. It covers a number of categories, including Management, Indoor Environment Quality, Energy, Transport, Water, Materials, Land Use and Ecology, Emissions, and Innovation. This paper reviews the usage of the Green Star system in Australian office tenancy fitouts and the potential challenges associated with Green Star-Office Interior implementation. This involves the analysis of score sheets of 66 office interior projects across Australia that achieved Green Star certification. The percentage of green star points obtained within each category and sub-categories (credits) for each project are investigated to illustrate the achievement of credits. The results show that Emission-related credits and Innovation related credits are the easiest and most difficult respectively to obtain. It is also found that 6 Green Star office interior projects perform especially better in the categories of Energy and Ecology than 4 and 5 Star projects. The investigation of point frequency in each category provides prospective Green Star applicants with insights into credit achievement for future projects.

Influence of ventilation and filtration on indoor particle concentrations in urban office buildings

This study aimed to quantify the efficiency of deep bag and electrostatic filters, and assess the influence of ventilation systems using these filters on indoor fine (<2.5 µm) and ultrafine particle concentrations in commercial office buildings. Measurements and modelling were conducted for different indoor and outdoor particle source scenarios at three office buildings in Brisbane, Australia. Overall, the in-situ efficiency, measured for particles in size ranges 6 to 3000 nm, of the deep bag filters ranged from 26.3 to 46.9% for the three buildings, while the in-situ efficiency of the electrostatic filter in one building was 60.2%. The highest PN and PM2.5 concentrations in one of the office buildings (up to 131% and 31% higher than the other two buildings, respectively) were due to the proximity of the building’s HVAC air intakes to a nearby bus-only roadway, as well as its higher outdoor ventilation rate. The lowest PN and PM2.5 concentrations (up to 57% and 24% lower than the other two buildings, respectively) were measured in a building that utilised both outdoor and mixing air filters in its HVAC system. Indoor PN concentrations were strongly influenced by outdoor levels and were significantly higher during rush-hours (up to 41%) and nucleation events (up to 57%), compared to working-hours, for all three buildings. This is the first time that the influence of new particle formation on indoor particle concentrations has been identified and quantified. A dynamic model for indoor PN concentration, which performed adequately in this study also revealed that using mixing/outdoor air filters can significantly reduce indoor particle concentration in buildings where indoor air was strongly influenced by outdoor particle levels. This work provides a scientific basis for the selection and location of appropriate filters and outdoor air intakes, during the design of new, or upgrade of existing, building HVAC systems. The results also serve to provide a better understanding of indoor particle dynamics and behaviours under different ventilation and particle source scenarios, and highlight effective methods to reduce exposure to particles in commercial office buildings.

Alveolar dose of ultrafine particles for children in urban environments

The aim of this study was to quantify school children’s exposure to ultrafine particles (UFP) in urban environments. The study was conducted as part of a larger epidemiological project aiming to determine the association between exposures to UFPs and children’s health, titled “Ultrafine Particles from Traffic Emissions and Children’s Health”1 (UPTECH). School children aged 8-11 years old at 24 state schools within the Brisbane Metropolitan Area participated in the present study. This paper presents the methodology and results for calculating deposited UFP surface area in the alveolar region (dose), where UFP deposition is more efficient for particles larger than 6 nm...

Remote measurement of diesel locomotive emission factors and particle size distributions

A technique for analysing exhaust emission plumes from unmodified locomotives under real world conditions is described and applied to the task of characterizing plumes from railway trains servicing an Australian shipping port. The method utilizes the simultaneous measurement, downwind of the railway line, of the following pollutants; particle number, PM2.5 mass fraction, SO2, NOx and CO2, with the last of these being used as an indicator of fuel combustion. Emission factors are then derived, in terms of number of particles and mass of pollutant emitted per unit mass of fuel consumed. Particle number size distributions are also presented. The practical advantages of the method are discussed including the capacity to routinely collect emission factor data for passing trains and to thereby build up a comprehensive real world database for a wide range of pollutants. Samples from 56 train movements were collected, analyzed and presented. The quantitative results for emission factors are: EF(N)=(1.7±1)×1016 kg-1, EF(PM2.5)= (1.1±0.5) g·kg-1, EF(NOx)= (28±14) g·kg-1, and EF(SO2 )= (1.4±0.4) g·kg-1. The findings are compared with comparable previously published work. Statistically significant (p<α, α=0.05) correlations within the group of locomotives sampled were found between the emission factors for particle number and both SO2 and NOx.

Spatio-temporal modelling of ultrafine particle number concentration

This thesis developed semi-parametric regression models for estimating the spatio-temporal distribution of outdoor airborne ultrafine particle number concentration (PNC). The models developed incorporate multivariate penalised splines and random walks and autoregressive errors in order to estimate non-linear functions of space, time and other covariates. The models were applied to data from the "Ultrafine Particles from Traffic Emissions and Child" project in Brisbane, Australia, and to longitudinal measurements of air quality in Helsinki, Finland. The spline and random walk aspects of the models reveal how the daily trend in PNC changes over the year in Helsinki and the similarities and differences in the daily and weekly trends across multiple primary schools in Brisbane. Midday peaks in PNC in Brisbane locations are attributed to new particle formation events at the Port of Brisbane and Brisbane Airport.

Reflections on chemistry sessions at the 2012 Healthy Buildings Conference

Scores of well-researched individual papers and posters specifically or indirectly addressing the occurrence, measurement or exposure impacts of chemicals in buildings were presented at 2012 Healthy Buildings Conference. Many of these presentations offered advances in sampling and characterisation of chemical pollutants while others extended the frontiers of knowledge on the emission, adsorption, risk, fate and compositional levels of chemicals in indoor and outdoor microenvironments. Several modelled or monitored indoor chemistry, including processes that generated secondary pollutants. This article provides an overview of the state of knowledge on healthy buildings based on papers presented in chemistry sessions at Healthy Buildings 2012 (HB2012) Conference. It also suggests future directions in healthy buildings research.

The development of a simple multi-nodal tool to identify performance issues in existing commercial buildings

Australia’s building stock includes many older commercial buildings with numerous factors that impact energy performance and indoor environment quality. The built environment industry has generally focused heavily on improving physical building design elements for greater energy efficiency (such as retrofits and environmental upgrades), however there are noticeable ‘upper limits’ to performance improvements in these areas. To achieve a stepchange improvement in building performance, the authors propose that additional components need to be addressed in a whole of building approach, including the way building design elements are managed and the level of stakeholder engagement between owners, tenants and building managers. This paper focuses on the opportunities provided by this whole-of-building approach, presenting the findings of a research project undertaken through the Sustainable Built Environment National Research Centre (SBEnrc) in Australia. Researchers worked with a number of industry partners over two years to investigate issues facing stakeholders at base building and tenancy levels, and the barriers to improving building performance. Through a mixed-method, industry-led research approach, five ‘nodes’ were identified in whole-of-building performance evaluation, each with interlinking and overlapping complexities that can influence performance. The nodes cover building management, occupant experience, indoor environment quality, agreements and culture, and design elements. This paper outlines the development and testing of these nodes and their interactions, and the resultant multi-nodal tool, called the ‘Performance Nexus’ tool. The tool is intended to be of most benefit in evaluating opportunities for performance improvement in the vast number of existing low-performing building stock.