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Atmosphere
Special Issues
Air Quality and Environmental Health: New Findings in COVID-19 Era
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Air Quality and Environmental Health: New Findings in COVID-19 Era

A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Air Quality and Human Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (29 August 2022) | Viewed by 6662

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Hsiuling Chen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Food Safety/Hygiene and Risk Management, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan
Interests: food safety; risk assessment analysis; environmental health; risk management; risk communication
Dr. Li-Te Chang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Engineering and Science, Feng Chia University, Taichung 407, Taiwan
Interests: indoor air quality; industrial hygiene; exposure assessment; environmental health; health risk assessment; air pollution monitoring; environmental statistics
Dr. Trias Mahmudiono

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Public Health, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya 60115, Indonesia
Interests: public health; food security; food safety; health effects and risk assessment; health policy

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Scientific briefings have been updated to reflect current knowledge about COVID-19 transmission and reformatted to be more concise. Public health guidance for protection from infected people and contaminated surfaces in cleaning, disinfecting, and ventilation should be adapted to accommodate safety measures related to COVID-19. We now know the importance of air quality and environmental health in controlling this pandemic. We hope that researchers can share their new knowledge and technologies with readers, and we look forward to publishing new findings from across the globe.

The themes of this Special Issue

  • Indoor air quality and related health issues
  • Protective equipment and design for COVID-19;
  • Intelligent environmental monitoring and environmental modeling and assessment in indoor and outdoor environments;
  • Health effects and risk assessment;
  • Strategies for controlling and removing contaminants;
  • Advanced measurement technology;
  • Policy, standards, regulations and guidelines for COVID-19;
  • Hazard prevention and control strategies in indoor and outdoor environments;
  • Food safety issues regarding COVID-19;
  • Nutrition education and health promotion.

Prof. Dr. Hsiuling Chen
Dr. Li-Te Chang
Dr. Trias Mahmudiono
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Atmosphere is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • indoor air quality
  • COVID-19
  • health effects
  • risk assessment
  • food safety
  • nutrition education
  • health promotion

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

25 pages, 2962 KiB  
Article
Predicting Risks of a COVID-19 Outbreak by Using Outdoor Air Pollution Indicators and Population Flow with Queuing Theory
by Yi-Fang Chiang, Ka-Ui Chu, Ling-Jyh Chen and Yao-Hua Ho
Atmosphere 2022, 13(10), 1727; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13101727 - 20 Oct 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1276
Abstract
COVID-19 has been widespread in all countries since it was first discovered in December 2019. The high infectivity of COVID-19 is primarily transmitted between people via respiratory droplets on contact routes, which makes it more difficult to prevent it. Air quality has been [...] Read more.
COVID-19 has been widespread in all countries since it was first discovered in December 2019. The high infectivity of COVID-19 is primarily transmitted between people via respiratory droplets on contact routes, which makes it more difficult to prevent it. Air quality has been considered to be highly correlated with respiratory diseases. In addition, population movement increases contact routes, which increases the risk of COVID-19 outbreaks. For epidemic prevention, the government’s strategies are also one of the factors that affect the risk of outbreaks, including whether it is mandatory to wear masks, stay-at-home orders, or vaccination. Wearing masks can reduce the risk of droplet infection, while stay-at-home orders can reduce contact between people. In this study, the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases and active cases of COVID-19 will be estimated according to the population movement, outdoor air pollution, and vaccination rates. Using the estimated results, the average recovery time will be predicted by Queuing Theory. The predicted average recovery time will be brought into risk analysis to estimate the possible high-risk periods. We compare the estimated high-risk periods with epidemic-prevention measures to provide a reference to evaluate the epidemic prevention plans enforced by relevant government agencies to achieve an improved control measure over the epidemic situation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Air Quality and Environmental Health: New Findings in COVID-19 Era)
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20 pages, 9462 KiB  
Article
Measurement of Indoor-Outdoor Carbonyls in Three Different Universities Located in the Metropolitan Zone of Mexico Valley during the First Period of Confinements Due to COVID-19
by Rocío García, Sandra Silva Gómez, Gema Andraca, Ricardo Torres Jardón, Agustín García Reynoso, Julia Griselda Cerón, Rosa María Cerón and Violeta Mugica Alvarez
Atmosphere 2022, 13(10), 1560; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13101560 - 24 Sep 2022
Viewed by 1438
Abstract
Carbonyl concentrations in indoor-outdoor air were measured at three urban sites in the Metropolitan Zone of Mexico Valley (MZMV) during the first period of confinements due to COVID-19; the exposure for people living in indoor environments was also assessed. Indoor and outdoor samples [...] Read more.
Carbonyl concentrations in indoor-outdoor air were measured at three urban sites in the Metropolitan Zone of Mexico Valley (MZMV) during the first period of confinements due to COVID-19; the exposure for people living in indoor environments was also assessed. Indoor and outdoor samples were simultaneously collected sequentially with Sep-Pack DNPH-Silica cartridges. Formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acetone, propionaldehyde, butyraldehyde and acrolein were quantified according to the US-EPA TO-11A method. Acrolein and acetone were the most abundant carbonyls in indoor air, with average concentrations of 55.5 µg m−3 and 46.4 µg m−3, respectively, followed by formaldehyde (29.1 µg m−3), acetaldehyde (21.4 µg m−3) and butyraldehyde (7.31 µg m−3). Propionaldehyde was not detected. Acetone was the dominant carbonyl in outdoor samples with an average concentration of 8.4 µg m−3, followed by formaldehyde (2.8 µg m−3) and acetaldehyde (0.7 µg m−3). Butyraldehyde and acrolein were not detected in outdoor air. Indoor/outdoor (I/O) ratios showed that indoor sources prevail for most aldehydes. Statistical analysis of simple correlations showed that the measured carbonyls were influenced by the presence of indoor sources. The average cancer risk coefficients (LTCR) for formaldehyde and acetaldehyde and the non-cancer risk coefficients (HQ) for acrolein and formaldehyde were higher than the recommended limits, which should be a cause for public concern. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Air Quality and Environmental Health: New Findings in COVID-19 Era)
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11 pages, 1857 KiB  
Article
Lag Effect of Temperature and Humidity on COVID-19 Cases in 11 Chinese Cities
by Fengliu Feng, Yuxia Ma, Bowen Cheng, Yifan Zhang, Heping Li and Pengpeng Qin
Atmosphere 2022, 13(9), 1486; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13091486 - 13 Sep 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1060
Abstract
The global transmission of COVID-19 has caused considerable health burdens, and epidemiological studies have proven that temperature and humidity play an important role in the transmission of infectious respiratory diseases. This effect may not be immediate and can be delayed by days to [...] Read more.
The global transmission of COVID-19 has caused considerable health burdens, and epidemiological studies have proven that temperature and humidity play an important role in the transmission of infectious respiratory diseases. This effect may not be immediate and can be delayed by days to weeks. In this study, the comprehensive effect of temperature and humidity on COVID-19 was evaluated using the discomfort index (DI). We analyzed the lag effect of the DI on COVID-19 from 21 January to 29 February 2020 in 11 Chinese cities by designing a generalized additive model (GAM). We classified the 11 Chinese cities into southern cities and northern cities to compare the potential effects in these two types of cities. The results reveal that the DI had the same negative correlation and different lag effects on daily COVID-19 cases. There was a significant negative correlation between the DI and daily COVID-19 cases (p < 0.05), except in Wuhan. The lag effect was stronger in the cities located further north. In northern cities, each unit decrease in the DI increased the COVID-19 risk from 7 to 13 lag days. In southern China, each unit decrease in the DI increased the COVID-19 risk from 0 to 7 lag days, especially in Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Air Quality and Environmental Health: New Findings in COVID-19 Era)
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13 pages, 739 KiB  
Article
Probabilistic Prediction Models and Influence Factors of Indoor Formaldehyde and VOC Levels in Newly Renovated Houses
by Wu-Ting Lin, Ru-Yin Tsai, Hsiu-Ling Chen, Yaw-Shyan Tsay and Ching-Chang Lee
Atmosphere 2022, 13(5), 675; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos13050675 - 23 Apr 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2063
Abstract
Rapid urbanization has promoted house renovations and refurbishment in urban and rural cities. Indoor pollutants emitted through renovations and refurbishment processes have raised public concerns owing to their adverse effects on human health. In the present study, the sources of formaldehyde and specific [...] Read more.
Rapid urbanization has promoted house renovations and refurbishment in urban and rural cities. Indoor pollutants emitted through renovations and refurbishment processes have raised public concerns owing to their adverse effects on human health. In the present study, the sources of formaldehyde and specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are used to model the health effects associated with exposure to formaldehyde and specific VOCs and the loading factors of building materials for newly renovated homes. The present study is carried out to identify the sources of formaldehyde and specific VOCs in newly renovated houses and develop probabilistic prediction models of the health effects to explore the health risks of residents and the potential contributions of multilayer wood materials responsible for indoor pollutants. In living rooms and bedrooms, the average concentrations of formaldehyde and TVOCs in closed window conditions were higher than those in opened window conditions. Multi-layer wooden structures were a significant predictor of indoor VOC concentrations in houses. The 95 percentile values of Monte Carlo simulations (MCS P95) of the hazard index and cancer risk were lower and slightly higher than the acceptable level, respectively. Prediction models for the concentrations of formaldehyde and selected VOCs in newly renovated houses were first established using probabilistic and sensitive approaches. The multi-layer wood materials, including the wooden floor, cold paint multi-layer wooden materials, and multi-layer materials for system furniture, were responsible for the contribution of these levels of formaldehyde and selected VOCs in the newly renovated houses. Our results provide a strategy for eliminating indoor pollutants emitted from construction and building/furnishing materials. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Air Quality and Environmental Health: New Findings in COVID-19 Era)
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