Edmonton Indoor Air Quality Study (EIAQS): Determinants of Residential Benzene

• Author / Creator

  Chui, Phyllis H. Y.

• Inhalation of benzene is associated with increased risk of leukemia. Edmonton Indoor Air Quality Study (EIAQS) investigated what factors were related to higher or lower levels of benzene in Edmonton homes. Factors examined were: season (winter, summer), environment (indoor, outdoor), traffic volume, proximity to downtown, socioeconomic status, garage type, number of occupants, and air exchange rate/age strata.
  
  Neighborhoods were age stratified and ten dwellings were randomly sampled from each stratum. Fifty dwellings were sampled with SUMMA™ canisters for 7 consecutive 24-hour periods in winter and summer of 2010. Benzene samples were analyzed by GC/MS. Data on daily activity patterns and house characteristics were collected using questionnaires and analyzed using SAS v9.2.
  A stepwise selection regression model predicted that 28% of the indoor benzene variability can be explained by season and presence of attached garage with connecting door as significant predictors (p<0.05).

• Subjects / Keywords

  • House age
  • Urban
  • Garage
  • Leukemia
  • Urban center
  • Air exchange rate
  • Benzene
  • Season
  • Traffic volume
  • Socioeconomic status
  • Occupancy
  • Indoor air quality
  • Outdoor air quality

• Graduation date

  Spring 2012

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Science

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R33M7N

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.