About Formaldehyde

 

 

 

Formaldehyde Gas

In the context of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), Formaldehyde is often considered separately from other members of the Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) family of polluting gases.

The reason is twofold, firstly because it is commonly emitted by building and decorating materials and consumer products and secondly because the very high levels found alongside some industrial processes has made it a subject of workplace concern.

Formaldehyde is widely used in composite wood products that have resins containing formaldehyde, and is in building materials and insulation, glues, paints, lacquers, and other coatings and can ‘off gas’ into the internal environment.

Formaldehyde is also released into the air from formaldehyde-containing personal care products including some shampoos, soaps, hair care products, body washes, and nail polish.

Moreover, many other consumer products, such as air fresheners, also emit both formaldehyde and volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) that react with ozone in the air to produce formaldehyde.

Consequently, it is cautionary that any device to be used indoors does not significantly add to the indoor level of formaldehyde.

Typical outdoor / indoor levels of formaldehyde (WHO^[1])

 

 

During a large indoor air survey carried out in homes by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) in the United Kingdom in 1997–1999, the mean and maximum levels observed in bedrooms were 0.022 and 0.171 μg/m³ respectively^[3].

Sensory irritation (WHO^[1])

The threshold for formaldehyde objective sensory irritation is about 1.0 mg/m³.

At that level some people might experience:

• Watery eyes
• Runny nose
• Burning sensations of the eyes, nose, and throat
• Coughing and wheezing

However, it is recognised that some highly sensitive people may experience sensory effects when formaldehyde is present in the air at levels as low as 0.13 mg/m3.

For this reason, the international WHO guideline is that indoor formaldehyde concentration should not exceed 0.1 mg/m³.

While WHO and others have investigated if elderly people, asthmatics and children are more sensitive to formaldehyde than others, there is no evidence that they are.

Can formaldehyde cause cancer?

Exposure to very high levels of formaldehyde in medical and other workplaces, such as industrial workers and embalmers, has been linked to some types of cancer in humans and thus such workplaces are generally subject to strict monitoring and limits.

More generally however, recent research^[2] suggests that the cancer risk threshold is high, at circa 0.37 mg/m³, that is 370% higher than the WHO advisory limit (see below).

Regulatory and advisory limits

There are multiple national / international standards for indoor formaldehyde concentrations, for example:

• The international WHO guideline is that indoor formaldehyde concentration should not exceed 0.1 mg/m³.
• The UK and EU Occupational Exposure Limit is 0.37 mg/m³ 8 hour average.
• The US National Institute of Health sensory irritation advisory limit is 0.125 mg/m³.
• The Australian national eight hour occupational exposure standard for formaldehyde is 1.2 mg/m³.

Typical consumer products and activitoes

The 2014 HAL study^[4] regarding formaldehyde emissions from cleaning products and air fresheners showed how consumer products can increase formaldehyde concentration in the home. The study found that wick air fresheners increased formaldehyde concentrations, as a percentage of the WHO guideline, by as much as 10%, glass cleaners and furniture polishes by up to 12%^, and floor cleaners by up to 45%. A second study^[6], found that an electric air freshener increased formaldehyde concentrations by up to 40%.

According to the California Environmental Protection Agency^[7], even cooking and cooker cleaning can increase concentrations by as much as 40% in the short term!

What about Airora?

Airora replicates outdoor atmospheric chemistry in that it creates hydroxyl radicals which destroys or neutralises all types of germs, moulds, allergens and odours and most other irritants and harmful pollutants throughout entire indoor spaces.

That technology involves, just as nature does outdoors, the breakdown of aromatic plant oils, which in turn has a small impact of formaldehyde levels. While Airora creates trace amounts of formaldehyde, the created hydroxyl radicals simultaneously also break down formaldehyde.

To ensure its safety, Airora’s technology has been subject to extensive independent testing as regards all types of VOC emissions, including formaldehyde, to ensure that there is no material increase in formaldehyde levels over time.

That testing has demonstrated that Airora’s impact on formaldehyde levels is marginal and typically less than that of many home consumables.

Notes:

1. No measurement before device turned on, value includes ambient
2. Intermediate times rounded to nearest day

 

You can find out all about Airora at airora.com

And contact us at support@airora.com

 

References:

1. WHO Guidelines for Indoor Air Quality: Selected Pollutants, 3 Formaldehyde.
2. Kun Lu, Low doses of formaldehyde not likely to increase risk of cancer in humans, Gillings School of Global Public Health.
3. Raw GJ, et al. Exposure to air pollutants in English homes. Journal of Exposure Analysis and Environmental Epidemiology, 2004.
4. Cécilia Solal et al. VOCs and formaldehyde emissions from cleaning products and air fresheners, HAL Open Science, 2014.
5. Tunga Salthammer, Formaldehyde sources, formaldehyde concentrations and air exchange rates in European housings, Building and Environment, 2019.
6. Anne Steinemann, Ten questions concerning air fresheners and indoor built environments, Building and Environment, 2017.
7. California Environmental Protection Agency report, Residential Cooking Exposure Study Finds Unhealthful Levels.