Common plants can help remove indoor air pollutants.Byline: ANI Washington, Nov 5 (ANI): Common indoor plants such as purple waffle, English ivy, variegated wax and purple heart plant have been found tremendously effective in eliminating harmful air pollutants in homes, offices, and other indoor spaces, say researchers. Indoor air is said to be 12 times more polluted than outdoor air due to paints, varnishes, adhesives, furnishings, clothing, solvents, building materials, and even tap water. Lead researcher Stanley J. Kays, Department of Horticulture, University of Georgia Organization The President of the University of Georgia (as of 2007, Michael F. Adams) is the head administrator and is appointed and overseen by the Georgia Board of Regents. , tested the ornamental indoor plants for their ability to remove harmful VOCs or volatile organic compounds from indoor air. These VOCs [including benzene, xylene xylene (zī`lēn) or dimethylbenzene (dī'mĕthəlbĕn`zēn), C6H4(CH3)2 , hexane, heptane hep·tane n. A volatile, colorless, highly flammable liquid hydrocarbon, C7H16, obtained in the fractional distillation of petroleum and used as a standard in determining octane ratings, as an anesthetic, and as a solvent. , octane, decane dec·ane n. Any of various liquid isomers, C10H22, of the methane series. decane , trichloroethylene (TCE), and methylene chloride] have been shown to cause illnesses in people who are exposed to the compounds in indoor spaces. Adding ornamental plants to indoor spaces can reduce stress, increase task performance, and reduce symptoms of ill health. During the study, the research team tested 28 common indoor ornamentals for their ability to remove five volatile indoor pollutants. "The VOCs tested in this study can adversely affect indoor air quality Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) deals with the content of interior air that could affect health and comfort of building occupants. The IAQ may be compromised by microbial contaminants (mold, bacteria), chemicals (such as carbon monoxide, radon), allergens, or any mass or energy stressor and have a potential to seriously compromise the health of exposed individuals," Kays said. "Benzene and toluene are known to originate from petroleum-based indoor coatings, cleaning solutions, plastics, environmental tobacco smoke environmental tobacco smoke (ETS/passive smoke), n the gaseous by-product of burning tobacco products, including but not limited to commercially manufactured cigarettes and cigars; contains toxic elements harmful to the health of adults and children , and exterior exhaust fumes emanating into the building; octane from paint, adhesives, and building materials; TCE from tap water, cleaning agents, insecticides, and plastic products; and alpha-pinene from synthetic paints and odorants," he added. These plants were grown in a shade house for eight weeks followed be acclimatization acclimatization Any of numerous gradual, long-term responses of an individual organism to changes in its environment. The responses are more or less habitual and reversible should conditions revert to an earlier state. for twelve weeks under indoor conditions before being placed in gas-tight glass jars. Of the 28 species tested, Hemigraphis alternata (purple waffle plant), Hedera helix (English ivy), Hoya carnosa (variegated wax plant), and Asparagus densiflorus (Asparagus fern) had the highest removal rates for all of the VOCs introduced. Tradescantia pallida (Purple heart plant) was rated superior for its ability to remove four of the VOCs. The study is published in HortScience. (ANI) Copyright 2009 Asian News International The Asian News International (ANI) agency provides multimedia news to China and 50 bureaus in India. It covers virtually all of South Asia since its foundation and presently claims, on its official website, to be the leading South Asia-wide news agency. (ANI) - All Rights Reserved. Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company |
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