Deborah Nibagwire, Godson R. E. E. Ana, Egide Kalisa, Gratien Twagirayezu, Abdou Safari Kagabo, Jacques Nsengiyumva
{"title":"Exposure patterns of PM2.5 and CO concentrations in residential and commercial buildings: factors influencing indoor air quality","authors":"Deborah Nibagwire, Godson R. E. E. Ana, Egide Kalisa, Gratien Twagirayezu, Abdou Safari Kagabo, Jacques Nsengiyumva","doi":"10.1007/s11869-025-01740-5","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Indoor air pollution is a growing concern as people spend most of their time indoors. However, information on indoor air quality and factors influencing indoor exposures remains limited, particularly in rapidly urbanizing cities like Kigali, Rwanda. To address this gap, this study examined the distribution of carbon monoxide (CO) levels and fine particulate matter (PM<sub>2.5</sub>) in residential and commercial buildings. Indoor and outdoor PM<sub>2.5</sub> and CO concentrations. Along with meteorological variables such as relative humidity (RH) and temperature, were measured every two minutes over 24-h period during both dry and wet seasons. PM<sub>2.5</sub> measurements were conducted from March to August 2024 in residential and commercial buildings, CO measurements were conducted from June to August 2024 in 88 households across urban, suburban, and industrial zones. The study found significantly higher PM<sub>2.5</sub> levels during the dry season, with indoor levels averaging 40.2 ± 19.3 μg/m<sup>3</sup> and outdoor levels 41.3 ± 17.5 μg/m<sup>3</sup>, compared to the wet season, where indoor levels were 32.8 ± 82.9 μg/m<sup>3</sup> and outdoor levels 35 ± 15.8 μg/m<sup>3</sup> outdoors. CO levels were consistently higher outdoors (691.3 ± 181.8 μg/m<sup>3</sup>) than indoors (478.4 ± 128.2 μg/m<sup>3</sup>). Indoor/outdoor (I/O) ratios for PM<sub>2.5</sub> were consistently below 1, indicating a strong influence of outdoor sources on indoor PM<sub>2.5</sub> levels. While, location type showed a slight correlation with PM<sub>2.5</sub> concentrations, building features such as age, window count, and ventilation exhibited varying but insignificant impacts. These findings highlight the critical role of outdoor pollution and meteorological factors in determining indoor air quality in Kigali and underscores the need for regulating outdoor pollution sources and indoor environments.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49109,"journal":{"name":"Air Quality Atmosphere and Health","volume":"18 6","pages":"1827 - 1843"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9000,"publicationDate":"2025-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Air Quality Atmosphere and Health","FirstCategoryId":"93","ListUrlMain":"https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11869-025-01740-5","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Indoor air pollution is a growing concern as people spend most of their time indoors. However, information on indoor air quality and factors influencing indoor exposures remains limited, particularly in rapidly urbanizing cities like Kigali, Rwanda. To address this gap, this study examined the distribution of carbon monoxide (CO) levels and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in residential and commercial buildings. Indoor and outdoor PM2.5 and CO concentrations. Along with meteorological variables such as relative humidity (RH) and temperature, were measured every two minutes over 24-h period during both dry and wet seasons. PM2.5 measurements were conducted from March to August 2024 in residential and commercial buildings, CO measurements were conducted from June to August 2024 in 88 households across urban, suburban, and industrial zones. The study found significantly higher PM2.5 levels during the dry season, with indoor levels averaging 40.2 ± 19.3 μg/m3 and outdoor levels 41.3 ± 17.5 μg/m3, compared to the wet season, where indoor levels were 32.8 ± 82.9 μg/m3 and outdoor levels 35 ± 15.8 μg/m3 outdoors. CO levels were consistently higher outdoors (691.3 ± 181.8 μg/m3) than indoors (478.4 ± 128.2 μg/m3). Indoor/outdoor (I/O) ratios for PM2.5 were consistently below 1, indicating a strong influence of outdoor sources on indoor PM2.5 levels. While, location type showed a slight correlation with PM2.5 concentrations, building features such as age, window count, and ventilation exhibited varying but insignificant impacts. These findings highlight the critical role of outdoor pollution and meteorological factors in determining indoor air quality in Kigali and underscores the need for regulating outdoor pollution sources and indoor environments.
期刊介绍：
Air Quality, Atmosphere, and Health is a multidisciplinary journal which, by its very name, illustrates the broad range of work it publishes and which focuses on atmospheric consequences of human activities and their implications for human and ecological health.
It offers research papers, critical literature reviews and commentaries, as well as special issues devoted to topical subjects or themes.
International in scope, the journal presents papers that inform and stimulate a global readership, as the topic addressed are global in their import. Consequently, we do not encourage submission of papers involving local data that relate to local problems. Unless they demonstrate wide applicability, these are better submitted to national or regional journals.
Air Quality, Atmosphere & Health addresses such topics as acid precipitation; airborne particulate matter; air quality monitoring and management; exposure assessment; risk assessment; indoor air quality; atmospheric chemistry; atmospheric modeling and prediction; air pollution climatology; climate change and air quality; air pollution measurement; atmospheric impact assessment; forest-fire emissions; atmospheric science; greenhouse gases; health and ecological effects; clean air technology; regional and global change and satellite measurements.
This journal benefits a diverse audience of researchers, public health officials and policy makers addressing problems that call for solutions based in evidence from atmospheric and exposure assessment scientists, epidemiologists, and risk assessors. Publication in the journal affords the opportunity to reach beyond defined disciplinary niches to this broader readership.
求助内容：
应助结果提醒方式：
京公网安备 11010802042870号
