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Hernandez W, Cañas N. Sensing Classroom Temperature, Relative Humidity, Illuminance, CO 2, and Noise: An Integral Solution Based on an IoT Device for Dense Deployments. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2024; 24:5129. [PMID: 39204826 PMCID: PMC11360498 DOI: 10.3390/s24165129] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2024] [Revised: 07/19/2024] [Accepted: 08/05/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
Maintaining optimal Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) requires continuous measurement of certain variables. To this end, ASHRAE and BPIE recommend that at least the following areas of interest be considered when measuring IEQ: thermal comfort, illuminance, indoor air quality, and noise. At this time, it is not common to find an IoT device that is suitable for dense deployments in schools, university campuses, hospitals, and office buildings, among others, that measures variables in all of the above areas of interest. This paper presents a solution to the problem previously outlined by proposing an IoT device that measures variables across all of the aforementioned areas of interest. Moreover, in a radio frequency network with a tree-like structure of IoT devices, this device is able to assume the roles of sensor and hub node, sensor and router node, and only sensor node. The experimental results are satisfactory, and the detailed system design ensures the replicability of the device. Furthermore, the theoretical analysis paves the way for high scalability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wilmar Hernandez
- Carrera de Ingenieria Electronica y Automatizacion, Facultad de Ingenieria y Ciencias Aplicadas, Universidad de las Americas, Quito 170513, Ecuador
| | - Norberto Cañas
- Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingeniería de Sistemas Informáticos, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28031 Madrid, Spain;
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Beel G, Langford B, Carslaw N, Shaw D, Cowan N. Temperature driven variations in VOC emissions from plastic products and their fate indoors: A chamber experiment and modelling study. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 881:163497. [PMID: 37062317 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.163497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Revised: 04/03/2023] [Accepted: 04/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Plastic products are ubiquitous in our homes, but we know very little about emissions from these products and their subsequent impact on indoor air quality. This is the first study to systematically determine temperature-dependent emissions of volatile organic compounds from commonly used plastic consumer products found in the home. The plastic types included high-density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polystyrene (PS) and polyester rubber. Plastic samples were exposed to increasing temperatures (between 18 and 28 °C) in controlled environmental chambers, connected to a proton-transfer-reaction time-of-flight mass-spectrometer (PTR-ToF-MS), where real-time emissions were detected. Average emission rates were determined and used to initialise an indoor air chemistry model (INCHEM-Py) at the highest and lowest experimental temperatures, to explore the impact these product emissions have on the indoor air chemistry. The PS tubing plastic proved to be the highest emitting polymer per surface area. Almost all selected VOC emissions were found to have a linear relationship with temperature. Upon observing the impacts of primary VOC emissions from plastics in modelled simulations, the hydroxyl radical concentration decreased by an average of 1.6 and 10 % relative to the baseline (with no plastics included) at 18 °C and 28 °C respectively. On the other hand, formaldehyde concentrations increased by 29 and 31.6 % relative to the baseline conditions at 18 °C and 28 °C respectively. The presence of plastic products indoors, therefore, has the potential to impact the indoor air quality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgia Beel
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik, Edinburgh EH26 0QB, United Kingdom; Department of Geography and Environment, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom.
| | - Ben Langford
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik, Edinburgh EH26 0QB, United Kingdom
| | - Nicola Carslaw
- Department of Geography and Environment, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom
| | - David Shaw
- Department of Geography and Environment, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom
| | - Nicholas Cowan
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik, Edinburgh EH26 0QB, United Kingdom
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Wright CY, Mathee A, Goldstone C, Naidoo N, Kapwata T, Wernecke B, Kunene Z, Millar DA. Developing a Healthy Environment Assessment Tool (HEAT) to Address Heat-Health Vulnerability in South African Towns in a Warming World. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2023; 20:2852. [PMID: 36833550 PMCID: PMC9957206 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20042852] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2022] [Revised: 01/28/2023] [Accepted: 02/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Prolonged exposure to high temperatures can cause heat-related illnesses and accelerate death, especially in the elderly. We developed a locally-appropriate Healthy Environment Assessment Tool, or 'HEAT' tool, to assess heat-health risks among communities. HEAT was co-developed with stakeholders and practitioners/professionals from the Rustenburg Local Municipality (RLM), a setting in which heat was identified as a risk in an earlier study. Feedback was used to identify vulnerable groups and settings in RLM, consider opportunities and barriers for interventions, and conceptualize a heat-health vulnerability assessment tool for a heat-resilient town. Using information provided by the RLM Integrated Development Plan, the HEAT tool was applied in the form of eight indicators relating to heat-health vulnerability and resilience and areas were evaluated at the ward level. Indicators included population, poverty, education, access to medical facilities, sanitation and basic services, public transport, recreation/community centres, and green spaces. Out of 45 wards situated in the municipality, three were identified as critical risk (red), twenty-eight as medium-high risk (yellow), and six as low risk (green) in relation to heat-health vulnerability. Short-term actions to improve heat health resilience in the community were proposed and partnerships between local government and the community to build heat health resilience were identified.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caradee Y. Wright
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
- Department of Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
| | - Angela Mathee
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg 2090, South Africa
- Department of Environmental Health, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa
- School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa
| | | | - Natasha Naidoo
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
| | - Thandi Kapwata
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg 2090, South Africa
- Department of Environmental Health, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa
- School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa
| | - Bianca Wernecke
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg 2090, South Africa
- Department of Environmental Health, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa
| | - Zamantimande Kunene
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg 2090, South Africa
| | - Danielle A. Millar
- Department of Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
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Wright CY, Wernecke B, Kapwata T, Kunene Z, Mathee A, Vande Hey J, Theron L. Perceptions of thermal comfort and coping mechanisms related to indoor and outdoor temperatures among participants living in rural villages in Limpopo province, South Africa. SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1177/00812463221129363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Global heating is considered one of the greatest threats to human health and well-being. Supporting human resilience to heating threats is imperative, but under-investigated. In response, this article reports a study that drew together results from quantitative data on perceptions of thermal comfort and mechanisms for coping with thermal discomfort among 406 households in a study in Giyani, Limpopo province. Indoor dwelling and outdoor temperatures were also analysed. Most participants perceived their dwellings to be too hot when it was hot outdoors. People relied on recommended heat health actions such as sitting outdoors in the shade or opening windows. While this agency is meaningful, resilience to climate change requires more than personal action. In light of the climate threats and climate-related disaster risks facing South Africa, an all-encompassing approach, including education campaigns, climate-proofed housing, access to basic services, and financial considerations that will help support resilient coping among South Africans, is urgently required.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caradee Y Wright
- Environment and Health Research Unit (EHRU), South African Medical Research Council, South Africa
| | - Bianca Wernecke
- Environment and Health Research Unit (EHRU), South African Medical Research Council, South Africa
| | - Thandi Kapwata
- Environment and Health Research Unit (EHRU), South African Medical Research Council, South Africa
| | - Zamantimande Kunene
- Environment and Health Research Unit (EHRU), South African Medical Research Council, South Africa
| | - Angela Mathee
- Environment and Health Research Unit (EHRU), South African Medical Research Council, South Africa
| | - Joshua Vande Hey
- Centre for Environmental Health and Sustainability, University of Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Linda Theron
- Faculty of Education, University of Pretoria, South Africa
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Nakstad B, Filippi V, Lusambili A, Roos N, Scorgie F, Chersich MF, Luchters S, Kovats S. How Climate Change May Threaten Progress in Neonatal Health in the African Region. Neonatology 2022; 119:644-651. [PMID: 35850106 DOI: 10.1159/000525573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Climate change is likely to have wide-ranging impacts on maternal and neonatal health in Africa. Populations in low-resource settings already experience adverse impacts from weather extremes, a high burden of disease from environmental exposures, and limited access to high-quality clinical care. Climate change is already increasing local temperatures. Neonates are at high risk of heat stress and dehydration due to their unique metabolism, physiology, growth, and developmental characteristics. Infants in low-income settings may have little protection against extreme heat due to housing design and limited access to affordable space cooling. Climate change may increase risks to neonatal health from weather disasters, decreasing food security, and facilitating infectious disease transmission. Effective interventions to reduce risks from the heat include health education on heat risks for mothers, caregivers, and clinicians; nature-based solutions to reduce urban heat islands; space cooling in health facilities; and equitable improvements in housing quality and food systems. Reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are essential to reduce the long-term impacts of climate change that will further undermine global health strategies to reduce neonatal mortality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Britt Nakstad
- Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Health, University of Botswana, Gaborone, Botswana.,Division of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Adelaide Lusambili
- Institute for Human Development, The Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Nathalie Roos
- Department of Medicine, Clinical Epidemiology Division, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Fiona Scorgie
- University of Witswatersand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Stanley Luchters
- Institute for Human Development, The Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Sari Kovats
- Centre on Climate Change and Planetary Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK
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Pule V, Mathee A, Melariri P, Kapwata T, Abdelatif N, Balakrishna Y, Kunene Z, Mogotsi M, Wernecke B, Wright CY. Classroom Temperature and Learner Absenteeism in Public Primary Schools in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph182010700. [PMID: 34682446 PMCID: PMC8535629 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph182010700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Revised: 10/02/2021] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Children spend a significant proportion of their time at school and in school buildings. A healthy learning environment that supports children should be thermally conducive for learning and working. Here, we aimed to study the relations between indoor classroom temperatures and learner absenteeism as a proxy for children’s health and well-being. This one-year prospective study that spanned two calendar years (from June 2017 to May 2018) entailed measurement of indoor classroom temperature and relative humidity, calculated as apparent temperature (Tapp) and collection of daily absenteeism records for each classroom in schools in and around King Williams Town, Eastern Cape province, South Africa. Classroom characteristics were collected using a standardized observation checklist. Mean indoor classroom temperature ranged from 11 to 30 °C, while mean outdoor temperature ranged from 6 °C to 31 °C during the sample period. Indoor classroom temperatures typically exceeded outdoor temperatures by 5 °C for 90% of the study period. While multiple factors may influence absenteeism, we found absenteeism was highest at low indoor classroom Tapp (i.e., below 15 °C). Absenteeism decreased as indoor Tapp increased to about 25 °C before showing another increase in absenteeism. Classroom characteristics differed among schools. Analyses of indoor classroom temperature and absenteeism in relation to classroom characteristics showed few statistically significant relations—although not exceptionally strong ones—likely because of the multiple factors that influence absenteeism. However, given the possible relationship between indoor temperature and absenteeism, there is a learning imperative to consider thermal comfort as a fundamental element of school planning and design. Furthermore, additional research on factors besides temperature that affect learner absenteeism is needed, especially in rural areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vicky Pule
- Department of Environmental Health, School of Behavioural and Lifestyle Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha 6019, South Africa; (V.P.); (A.M.); (P.M.)
| | - Angela Mathee
- Department of Environmental Health, School of Behavioural and Lifestyle Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha 6019, South Africa; (V.P.); (A.M.); (P.M.)
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa; (T.K.); (Z.K.); (M.M.); (B.W.)
- Environmental Health Department, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa
| | - Paula Melariri
- Department of Environmental Health, School of Behavioural and Lifestyle Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha 6019, South Africa; (V.P.); (A.M.); (P.M.)
| | - Thandi Kapwata
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa; (T.K.); (Z.K.); (M.M.); (B.W.)
- Environmental Health Department, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa
| | - Nada Abdelatif
- Biostatistics Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Durban 4001, South Africa; (N.A.); (Y.B.)
| | - Yusentha Balakrishna
- Biostatistics Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Durban 4001, South Africa; (N.A.); (Y.B.)
| | - Zamantimande Kunene
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa; (T.K.); (Z.K.); (M.M.); (B.W.)
| | - Mirriam Mogotsi
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa; (T.K.); (Z.K.); (M.M.); (B.W.)
| | - Bianca Wernecke
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa; (T.K.); (Z.K.); (M.M.); (B.W.)
- Environmental Health Department, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2094, South Africa
| | - Caradee Yael Wright
- Department of Environmental Health, School of Behavioural and Lifestyle Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha 6019, South Africa; (V.P.); (A.M.); (P.M.)
- Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
- Department of Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +27-12-339-8543
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