International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-018-1800-1 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Indoor air quality in printing press in Kuwait L. Al‑Awadi1 · M. Al‑Rashidi1 · B. Pereira1 · A. Pillai1 · A. Khan1 Received: 19 August 2017 / Revised: 6 February 2018 / Accepted: 15 May 2018 © Islamic Azad University (IAU) 2018 Abstract The well-being of the workers in any place is the main health goal of any office; thereby, this study has focused on the printing press due to the inadequate indoor air quality. Most of the pollutants are emitted from the storage, use and disposal of chemicals and liquid/solid waste. Printing inks, toner and cartridges contain volatile organic components that have the potential to generate odors and can cause serious health risk. The press is located in a separate building, away from the main work area containing administration and laboratories. The press is responsible for various tasks, from visiting cards to conferences proceedings. Air quality inside the printing press has been assessed taking into consideration associated offices, administration, editing, printing and publications sections, and heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system performance was evaluated through continuous monitoring of temperature, humidity and carbon dioxide (CO2) levels. The assessment of the indoor air quality in printing press was completed by accurate measurements of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), CO2, temperature, humidity, ozone and particulate matters. These measured values were compared with national and international guidelines set for an acceptable indoor air quality. The results will be used for the identification of sources, which can be implemented in mitigation strategies to abate the prevalence of sick building syndrome if exists. Samples taken for 8 working hours revealed VOCs levels approached 7.72 ppm where 33.82% contribution was from halogenated compounds where predominant compound was refrigerant trichlorofloromethane (R-11) leaked from refrigeration loop of HVAC system, followed by oxygenated group 25.84% mainly consisting of methyl tertiary butyl ether common additive of gasoline emitted from light vehicles. Aliphatic group constituted 25.62% of TVOC, where predominant compound was solvent cyclohexane, and aromatic group was the least 14.72% of the TVOC consisting of toluene common thinner. Keywords Printing press · Indoor air quality · Volatile organic compounds · CO2 · Sick building syndrome Introduction The concerned printing press is a facility at a semi-governmental organization in Kuwait. The press is located in a separate building, away from the main office building containing administration, laboratories and workshops. The press is responsible for different tasks, such as printing of scientific magazines, weekly and monthly gazettes, posters/ announcements, brochures, flyers, office stationary, in-house forms, visiting cards, newsletters, reports and proceedings. To render tasks, large quantities of chemicals were used and Editorial responsibility: Mohamed Fathy Yassin. * L. Al-Awadi lawadi@kisr.edu.kw 1 Environment and Life Sciences Research Centre, Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research, P.O. Box 24885, 13109 Safat, Kuwait had associated emissions. Many VOCs were designated as hazardous air pollutants under Title III, Section 112 of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments. Regulatory agencies maintain full details of ambient and outdoor concentration levels of VOCs for most of the major urban areas (Health Safety and Executive 2017). Indoor air quality was assessed inside the printing press taking into consideration the offices, administration, editing, printing and publications sections by measuring particulate matter and VOCs. HVAC system performance was evaluated thoroughly by continuous monitoring of temperature, humidity and indoor CO2 levels. Figure 1 shows all the printing facilities present at printing press in the semi-governmental research institute in Kuwait. There is paucity of data of indoor VOC concentrations in nonoccupational environment (Sexton et al. 2004). Several publications have been reported in the last two decades on chronic health effects related to indoor air quality (Norback et al. 1995; Jones 1999; Cheong and Chong 2001). Ambient 13 Vol.:(0123456789) International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Fig. 1 Different sections of the printing press at a semi-governmental research institute in Kuwait. a The administrative office, b the photocopy section, c the ‘offset’ printing section, d the ‘computer to plate’ printing section air quality has strong influence on indoor air as that infiltrates and dilutes the indoor air pollutants levels through ventilation (Al-Awadi et al. 2012). Saraga et al. (2011) have compared indoor air quality of three non-residential buildings by measuring particulate matter, inorganic pollutants and very selective VOCs mainly carbonyl and aromatic compounds, benzene, toluene and xylenes (BTX). They reported highest recorded average values during the experimental campaign (22nd June to 2nd of July 2007) at printery section, which were PM2.5 (151 µg m−3), benzene (69.4 µg m−3), toluene (147 µg m−3), SO2 (47 µg m−3) and NO2 (96.6 µg m−3). Kiurski et al. (2013) have reported VOCs and ozone emissions from screen printing industry and their influence on the air quality in the premises. Le Roux (2016) has summarized the relationship of workers and their environment in eighteenth and nineteenth centuries of Great Britain and France during industrialization. The industrial hazardous regimes were identified, but industrial toxicants that were important were in continuous use over very long time during the process of economic development in the Western world. Leung et al. (2005) have presented VOCs emissions from organic solvent, ink and fountain solution and cleaning agents. They observed TVOC 13 486 ppm exceeded the short term exposure limit (STEL), 400 ppm during cleaning operation. US EPA (1996) has issued an enclosure “AP-42” emission factors background documentation publication rotogravure printing and also published list of national emission standards of hazardous air pollutants from printing and publishing industry “EPA-453/R-95-002a” (Black and Townsend 1996). Barn (1997) and Molhave et al. (1997) have defined total VOC measurements and guidelines for indoor air in different enclosed premises. TVOC would be used for the introduction of exposure limits and associated health or comfort influences. They concluded that the use of TVOC was not an effective predictor but characterized as an indoor pollution indicator and must be used as a source control as a pollution abating strategy required from the points of view of health, comfort, energy efficiency and sustainability. Wadden et al. (1995) have determined the VOC emission rates from offset printers. Kataoka et al. (2012) have established method for identification and accurately quantification of indoor VOC contaminants applying advanced gas chromatography. Davis et al. (2007) have discussed occupational exposure of VOC and PM in US trucking industry and reported wide variation from place to place. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Kiurski et al. (2017) in their latest publication have presented Eco design practice in the local Serbian printing industry. The state-of-the-art approach in information technology has revolutionized fabrication as application of 3D-printing that will inherit severe indoor pollution problems. Floyd et al. (2017) have reported particulate and VOC emissions produced from different filaments used with a low-cost 3-D printer in a close environmental testing chamber to characterize all the aerosols and also quantified organic compounds. Butler et al. (2016) have discussed in detail health risk of indoor exposure to particular matter in general and particularly associated with printing press. In this paper, IAQ in different printing facilities has been compared and appropriate mitigation methods have been proposed to reduce the impact of inhalation of hazardous pollutants to employees. Materials and methods The sampling campaign was conducted in the four sections of the press (photocopy section, ‘computer to plate’ printing section, ‘offset’ printing section and administrative office). VOCs, CO2 and ozone levels were measured in all four sampling sites. Heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system performance The administrative office and photocopy section has been equipped with central HVAC system, while the ‘computer to plate’ printing section is located in a separate building with four split units of each 18,000 BThU/h capacity, where 100% of indoor air is re-circulated with no fresh air intake. The ‘offset’ printing area has central HVAC but had additional three split units of each capacity 18,000 BThU/h to maintain an acceptable degree of comfort for the operators where photo copier, printer, etc., were in continuous use. The administrative office is located in the printing press building and has been occupied by a number of staff. A partitioned office in the same premises was taken as a sampling point to represent the whole administrative block, which has around 10 employees present in office hour time. The photocopy section is adjacent to the administrative block and has about 6 photocopying machines installed in two rows and operated by six staff members during working hours. The ‘offset’ printing facility contains offset printing press with storage of all the printing materials (chemicals, ink, thinner, etc.). Four operators work in this section during official working hours. The ‘computer to plate’ printing facility is located in separate building very close to the main printing complex. It houses around 2 staff members who work on printing plates via computer. This facility is closed most of the time with a small window that is kept open for ventilation for almost all the operational time. VOC measurements Sampling of indoor/outdoor air over 50 canisters for VOCs was conducted covering weekend and weekday for a period of about a year (year 2014–2015). Pre-evacuated siliconcoated stainless steel canisters were used for 8 working hours and 24-h sampling period of indoor air at the four selected sites. Indoor air samples from canisters were analyzed using state-of-the-art gas chromatograph (GC) coupled with cryogenic pre-concentrator with flame ionization detector (FID). Seventy-two VOCs of different functional groups (i.e., aliphatic, aromatic, oxygenated and halogenated) were quantified at ppb-level with all relevant method detection limits (MDLs) and uncertainty values. Indoor air samples were usually taken from canister mounted at autosampler and concentrated by a three-stage pre-concentrator (Entech7100A). 800 ml of sampled air was concentrated and then injected into the GC-FID (Agilent 6890). A DB-624 capillary column (J&W Scientific, Inc.) of 60 m length and 0.25 mm internal diameter with 1.40 µm film thickness were employed to separate the VOCs. A temperature ramp starting at 35 °C with an initial hold for 3 min followed by an increment of 6 °C/min to 180 °C was utilized for the analytical separation. Helium 6.0 (Messer) was used as the carrier gas. The eluting VOC components were detected by the FID wherein a hydrogen/air flame chemically ionized the organically bound carbon atoms of the sample and produced electrical signals, which were subsequently measured. The detailed operational procedure has been reported elsewhere (Al-Awadi 2018). CO2, temperature and relative humidity measurements CO2 is a product of completed combustion of organic compounds; all combustion processes and metabolic processes of living organisms are sources of this most commonly existing compound. In occupied areas, the CO2 concentration is indicative of the number of occupants. Temperature, humidity and CO2 sensors were all assembled with a data logger in one device, CO2 Meter, Inc., USA—model K-33 ELG 1% CO2, which was used to continuously monitor all these variables to assess the comfort level in the selected sites in the months of September and October 2014. The operational performance of the HVAC system was thoroughly investigated with respective indoor air quality (IAQ). The measured values were recorded on 10-min interval for all variables, temperature and relative humidity (RH). 13 International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Ozone measurement To estimate the impact of office equipment on the quality of indoor air, the ozone levels were continuously measured in different sections of the printing press at different timings. The laser printers, equipped with traditional technology emitted significant amounts of ozone, aldehyde and aromatic VOCs (Saraga et al. 2011). Lesser amounts of other volatile aldehydes were also emitted during printing operations. Ozone is produced in the photocopier facilities due to the presence of its precursors where strong UV light source has generated ozone (Tuomi et al. 2000). For ozone monitoring, 2B Technologies Model 202 Ozone Monitor™ was used to reveal the levels of ozone during different operations of printing press reflecting ventilation of the premises. Ozone concentrations were recorded continuously at 10 s interval in all selected sections at the printing press during working hours. Particulate matter (PM) All the printing equipments are fitted with dust removal facilities but are not kept in proper operational condition. The quality of printing product is strongly influenced by the presence of PM that has an associated health risk to the workers (Bo et al. 2017). PM monitor “Osiris” was used to continuously monitor total suspended particles (TSP), PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 for a period of 2/3 weeks spread over a period of 2 months. Osiris uses light scatting technique to determine the mass concentrations of air borne particles in the specified size ranges. PM2.5 and smaller particles are inhalable and have high health risk. WHO has specified guideline directives for indoor air quality in working environment (WHO 2005). PM2.5 concentrations are used as a pollution indicator in cities worldwide. Results and discussion VOC concentrations Printing press has different specified activities, and four sampling sites were selected based on different types of printing practice. The VOC levels in the indoor air in workplace reflected organic chemicals (solvents, ink, thinner, and tonner) applied and used in the respective equipments. The VOC sampling for 8- and 24-h periods covering weekdays and weekends showed wide variation reflecting printing workload. Among three different printing facilities (photocopying, computer to plate, offset), the ‘offset’ printing section has the highest VOC concentration due to extensive application of different organic chemicals. Figure 2 is a comprehensive presentation of concentrations of different 13 functional groups of VOC at different printing facilities in the printing press in different days (week day/weekend) and for working hours (7:00–15:00) and 24-h sampling time duration. Figure 3 compares the contribution of each functional group in the cocktail of total VOC with the identification of the most abundant compound in the respective group for all printing facilities. The highest proportion of functional group at the ‘photocopy printing section during the weekend (Friday) 19th of September 2014 in TVOC (790.4 ppb) was that of halogenated group (45.67%), mainly consisting of the refrigerant dichlorotetrafluoro-ethane (R-114) (93.25 ppb/652.2 µg m−3) leaked from the refrigeration loop of HVAC system. Aliphatic group compounds were less than aromatic and oxygenated group VOC, where predominant compounds in these two groups were 1,2,4-trimethyl benzene and ethanol, respectively, solvents used in and around other sections of printing press. The highest proportion of functional group at the ‘computer to plate’ printing section during the weekend in TVOC (436 ppb) was that of halogenated group (86.53%), mainly consisting of the refrigerant dichlorodifluoromethane (R-12)/chlorodifluoromethane (R22) (350 ppb/1238.2 µg m−3) leaked from the refrigeration loop of HVAC system. Aliphatic and aromatic group compounds were less than oxygenated group where predominant compound was methanol (20.6 ppb/27.0 µg m−3). The highest total VOC concentration was about 1375 ppb at the ‘offset’ printing section predominantly halogenated hydrocarbon (39.9%) mainly constituting of a very common solvent dichloroethane (231.5 ppb/937.4 µg m−3), extensively applied in printing industry. The second highest concentration was of aromatic hydrocarbons (28.43%) mainly constituting of 1,2,4-tri-methyl benzene (200 ppb/981 µg m−3) a very frequently used solvent that had broad application in printing industry. Among oxygenated hydrocarbons that were 28.34% of TVOC, the most abundant compound was ethanol (108 ppb/203.2 µg m−3) that had wide-ranging use in printing and publishing industry. In administrative office, that was located in the printing press had TVOC 577 ppb, cocktail of all VOC emissions from different printing facilities dispersed and mixed with workers movements and air circulation of HVAC system. On working days, VOC concentrations reflected the workload and application of various chemicals in ink, toner, thinner, solvents, colors, etc. in different printing facilities during working hours, where sampling time was fixed either 8 working hours (7:00–15:00) or 24 h and the highest value was at the ‘offset’ printing site for former sampling period. Sometimes on weekends, accumulated extra printing load was handled, resulting into high buildup of indoor TVOC. The highest proportion of functional group at the ‘photocopy printing section during the Wednesday 12th of November 2014, 8-h sampling in TVOC (1975 ppb) was International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Fig. 2 Different functional groups VOC concentrations in indoor air at various printing facilities for either 8- or 24-h sampling period at printing press that of halogenated group (59.71%), mainly consisting of the vinyl chloride (336.45 ppb/860.0 µg m−3) emitted from commercial products like pipes, wire-coatings and packaging materials (Fig. 4). Aliphatic group compounds were less than aromatic and oxygenated group VOC, where predominant compound in aromatic was 1,2,4-tri-methyl benzene (169.3 ppb/830.9 µg m−3) and in oxygenated group was methanol (185.1 ppb/242.3 µg m−3), these were solvents/ cleaning agents used in and around other sections of printing press. The highest proportion of functional group at the ‘computer to plate’ printing section during the week day in TVOC (349 ppb) was that of halogenated group (58.72%), mainly consisting of the refrigerant dichlorodifluoromethane (R-12)/chlorodifluoromethane (R-22) (77.6 ppb/274.5 µg m−3) leaked from the refrigeration loop of HVAC system. Aliphatic and aromatic group compounds were less than oxygenated group (26.63% of TVOC) where predominant compound was methanol (32.46 ppb/42.5 µg m−3). The highest total VOC concentration was about 3634 ppb at the ‘offset’ printing section predominantly halogenated hydrocarbon (42.25%) mainly constituting of a very common solvent dichloroethane (903.7 ppb/3659.2 µg m−3), extensively applied in printing industry. The second highest concentration was of aromatic hydrocarbons (41.53%) mainly comprising 1,2,4-tri-methyl benzene (899.8 ppb/4416.2 µg m−3), a very frequently used solvent that had broad application in printing industry. Among oxygenated hydrocarbons that were 15.01% of TVOC, the most abundant compound was methanol (214.4 ppb/280.6 µg m−3) that has wideranging use in printing and publishing industry. In administrative office, that was located in the printing press had TVOC 1175 ppb, cocktail of all VOC emissions from different printing facilities dispersed and mixed with workers movements and goods transport. The highest proportion of functional group at the ‘photocopy printing section during the Tuesday 23rd of September 2014, 24-h sampling in TVOC (856 ppb) was that of halogenated group (48.31%), mainly consisting of the refrigerant dichlorotetrafluoro-ethane (R-114) (133.9 ppb/936.5 µg m−3) leaked from the refrigeration loop of HVAC system (Fig. 5). Aliphatic group compounds were less than aromatic and oxygenated group VOC, where predominant compound in aromatic was 1,2,4-tri-methyl benzene (70.02 ppb/343.7 µg m−3) and in oxygenated group was ethanol (94.74 ppb), these were solvents/cleaning agents used in and around other sections of printing press. The highest proportion of functional group at the ‘computer to plate’ printing section during the 24-h sampling in TVOC (1064.9 ppb) was that of halogenated group (42.82%), mainly consisting of the refrigerant of the refrigerant 13 International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Fig. 3 Percentage composition of TVOC on Friday, 19th Sept. 2014 at a photocopying section; b ‘computer to plate’ printing section; c ‘offset’ printing section; and d administrative office dichlorotetrafluoro-ethane (R-114) (129.2 ppb/903.6 µg m−3) leaked from the refrigeration loop of HVAC system. Aliphatic and aromatic group compounds were less than oxygenated group, which was (30.27% of TVOC) where predominant compound was ethanol (113.5 ppb/213.5 µg m−3). The highest total VOC concentration was about 1587.3 ppb at the ‘offset’ printing section predominantly halogenated hydrocarbon (35.1%) mainly consisting of the refrigerant dichlorodifluoromethane (R-12)/chlorodifluoromethane (R22) (122.5 ppb/433.4 µg m−3) leaked from the refrigeration loop of HVAC system. The second highest concentration was of aromatic hydrocarbons (32.92%) mainly comprising 1,2,4-tri-methyl benzene (244.9 ppb/1202.0 µg m−3), a very frequently used solvent that had broad application in printing industry. Among oxygenated hydrocarbons that were 29.87% of TVOC, the most abundant compound was methanol (224.02 ppb/293.2 µg m−3) that has wide-ranging use in printing and publishing industry. In administrative office, that was located in the printing press had TVOC 453.4 ppb, cocktail of all VOC emissions from different printing 13 facilities dispersed and mixed with workers movements and goods transport. The highest proportion was from halogenated group 81% comprising dichlorodifluoromethane (R-12)/ chlorodifluoromethane (R-22) emitted from the refrigeration cycle. The second highest proportion was oxygenated group 12.73% consisting of methanol (25.43 ppb/33.3 µg m−3) a common solvent and cleaning agent. Aliphatic group compounds were 4.26% mainly propene emitted from biogenic sources, while the least proportion was of aromatic group 2.02% dominant compound was 1,2,4-trimethyl benzene. The highest TVOC concentration was found to be at the ‘offset’ printing section on Friday, 28th August 2014 for 8 working hours (7:00–15:00), while there was over 25% reduction for 24 h sampling values ascertaining the dilution. On the contrary, outdoor air samples for TVOC levels showed about 23% increase from 8-working-hour sampling periods. Two samples of 8- and 24-h sampling periods at the ‘offset’ printing facilities and outdoor samples were analyzed and presented for different functional groups of VOC in Fig. 6. The highest value of TVOC (7717 ppb) International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Fig. 4 Percentage composition of TVOC on Wednesday, 12 November 2014 for 8 h (7:00–15:00) at a the photocopying section; b the ‘computer to plate’ printing section; c the ‘offset’ printing section; and d the administrative office was for 8-h sample at the ‘offset’ printing site. The highest proportion of functional group was halogenated compounds (33.82%) mainly consisting of refrigerant trichlorofluoromethane (R-11) was about 690.1 ppb (4826 µg m−3) leaked from the refrigeration cycle of local HVAC system. Aromatic group has the least value (14.72%) with predominant compound toluene (426.5 ppb/1604.8 µg m−3) commercial extensively used as a thinner and oxygenated group has 25.84% of TVOC mainly constituting of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) (399.55 ppb/1438.1 µg m−3), a common additive of gasoline emitted from light duty vehicles fuel. The aliphatic group represented 25.62% of TVOC; the major contributing compound was common solvent cyclohexane (1354.2 ppb/4652.5 µg m−3). Indoor air sample of 24 h period has same dominant compounds from each functional group of the TVOC (5745 ppb) consisting of halogenated 36.4%, oxygenated 25.67%, aliphatic 24% where the reminder was aromatic group compounds. The corresponding predominant compounds in each group were refrigerant R-11 (491.13 ppb/2400.4 µg m−3), toluene 283.22 ppb (1065.7 µg m−3), MTBE 275.92 ppb (993.1 µg m−3) and cyclohexane 903.94 ppb in the respective functional groups of TVOC. Hu et al. (2016) have reported the health risk of inhalation of MTBE vapors. The highest total VOC concentration was about 208.9 ppb at the roof of the ‘offset’ printing premises on Friday, 28th August 2014 for 8 working hours (7:00–15:00), where predominant halogenated group was about 53.8% of TVOC mainly constituting of a very common compound vinyl chloride (56.17 ppb/143.6 µg m−3), extensively applied in pipes, insulation wires and packaging materials. The second highest concentration was of aliphatic hydrocarbons (26.4% of TVOC) mainly constituting of propene (32.92 ppb/56.5 µg m−3) emitted from biogenic sources from ornamental gardens and road vehicles followed by oxygenated compounds (17.9% of TVOC) comprising acetone (7.44 ppb/17.6 µg m−3) a common solvent/cleaning agent that has an extensive use in offices. Aromatic group was the 13 International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Fig. 5 Percentage composition of TVOC on Tuesday, 23rd Sept. 2014 for 24 h at a the photocopying section; b the ‘computer to plate’ printing section; c the ‘offset’ printing section; and d the administrative office least 1.9% of the TVOC predominant compound was toluene (0.94 ppb/3.5 µg m−3) that might have released from ink, paints/color (thinner). Ambient air sample of 24-h duration had 23% increase in TVOC (257.3 ppb), where the highest proportion of functional group was halogenated compounds (39%) mainly consisting of vinyl chloride, which was about 41.99 ppb (107.3 µg m−3). Aromatic group has the second highest contribution (28.5%) with predominant compound ethyl benzene (65.47 ppb/283.8 µg m−3) an additive to fuel, ink, paint and varnish, etc., and the oxygenated group has the least proportion 15.9% of TVOC mainly consisting of nonanal that had concentration equal to 9.37 ppb, natural existing fragrances, fruit flavors. The aliphatic group represented 16.6% of TVOC, and the major contributing compound was propene equal to 25.02 ppb (43.0 µg m−3). Ramadan (2017) has reported average values of different functional groups in and around one of the major power generation facilities in Kuwait. He has reported the highest concentrations of two specific compounds, vinyl chloride and 1,2,4 trichlorobenzene. The high values were at DW-AP06 location, downwind from fuel storage, which did not reflect fuel ingredients but 13 were from plastic products and commonly used herbicide/ pesticide. Al-Awadi (2018) reported the results of VOC in schools where the most abundant organic compound in most of the places was the refrigerant chlorodifluoromethane (R22) used in air conditioning units had high concentrations in indoor environments and lower levels in outdoor air, mainly on roofs and in yards, in concordance with (Al-Khulaifi et al. 2014; Al-Mudhaf et al. 2013). Improper handling and storage of laboratory chemicals were the main source of VOC emissions in all school hot spots. Two-way ANOVA without replication was applied to aliphatic, aromatic, halogenated oxygenated group compounds and total VOC for 8-h and 24-h sampling on weekday and weekend at different printing facilities. The results are tabulated in Table 1. F value for aliphatic group compounds (C3H6, C5H10, cyclohexane, isoprene, acrolein, etc.) for various printing facilities and at several working days for 8-h sampling was 4.791 with significance P value of 0.02 rejecting the null hypothesis for all printing facilities reflecting significant variances. The use of different organic chemicals in various printing facilities has confirmed these International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Fig. 6 Percentage composition of TVOC on Friday, 28 August 2014 for 8 working hours (7:00–15:00) at a the ‘offset’ printing section and b the roof of the printing press and for 24 h at c the ‘offset’ printing section and d the roof of the printing press results. F value for different sampling times was 1.709 with significance P value of 0.213 accepting null hypothesis with insignificant variance reflecting the consistent printing load. Similar trend was noticed for 8-working-hour sampling period, aromatic, oxygenated and total VOC levels. F value for the halogenated group compounds was 2.248 with significance P value of 0.135 accepting the null hypothesis for all printing facilities reflecting insignificant variance, where predominant pollutant was common refrigerant HCFC/CFC that leaked from the refrigeration cycle of HVAC system and other additional air conditioning split units later installed for extra needed cooling to compensate for additional heatload in extreme hot/dry harsh weather for the comfort of the employees of the printing press. Similar trend was noticed for different sampling dates. For 24-h sampling period, ANOVA results showed no apparent change in variance among the pollutants levels at various printing facilities as well as at several sampling times due to dispersion phenomena of chemicals for prolonged times for aliphatic, aromatic, oxygenated and total VOC concentrations. On the contrary to these groups, halogenated compounds had showed a significant variance among all printing facilities and also at all sampling dates due to localized emission of particular compound HCFC/ CFC from refrigeration loop. F value for the halogenated group compounds was 35.12 with significance P value of 0.008 rejecting the null hypothesis for all printing facilities reflecting a significant change in variance. Similarly F value for different sampling dates was 11.19 with a significance P value of 0.044, thus rejecting the null hypothesis assuring change in variance. Al-Hemoud et al. (2017) have applied two-way ANOVA to the total average monthly VOC concentrations in schools among two zones and found significant difference, having higher values in zone 1 due to high intensity of road traffic in commercial districts of the city. The ratios of indoor/outdoor (I/O) concentration of different individual VOC were determined for 8 working hours and 24 h for the ‘offset’ printing section, and the values are presented in Table 2. This data were analyzed using twoway ANOVA without replication and the comparison of 8 working hours and 24-h sampling periods was conducted on the ‘offset’ printing section and the results are summarized 13 International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Table 1 Summary of ANOVA results for aliphatic, aromatic, halogenated, oxygenated, total VOCs and indoor/outdoor concentration ratio of different VOCs Source of variation df Mean squares F 8-Working-hour samples Aliphatic group of VOCs Printing facilities 3 611.6 4.791 Dates of sampling 4 218.1 1.709 Aromatic group of VOCs Printing facilities 3 458,155.7 6.454 Dates of sampling 4 131,409.9 1.851 Halogenated group of VOCs Printing facilities 3 151,768.5 2.248 Dates of sampling 4 177,145.3 2.624 Oxygenated group of VOCs Printing facilities 3 123,166.4 5.415 Dates of sampling 4 35,140.9 1.545 Sum of all different groups of VOCs (TVOCs) Printing facilities 3 1,967,645.7 6.092 Dates of sampling 4 634,141.0 1.963 24-h sample Aliphatic group of VOCs Printing facilities 3 254.4 1.887 Dates of sampling 4 181.5 1.356 Aromatic group of VOCs Printing facilities 3 59,251.7 4.257 Dates of sampling 4 5204.5 0.374 Halogenated group of VOCs Printing facilities 3 17,811.3 35.123 Dates of sampling 4 5673.3 11.187 Oxygenated group of VOCs Printing facilities 3 38,623.7 3.271 Dates of sampling 4 13,469.4 1.141 Sum of all different groups of VOCs (TVOCs) Printing facilities 3 342,612.7 6.697 Dates of sampling 4 76,726.2 1.500 I/O ratio of different VOCs for 8-working-hour samplings Individual VOCs 16 78,955.7 3.445 Dates of sampling 5 107,385.2 4.685 I/O ratio of different VOCs for 24-h samplings Individual VOCs 16 251,195.9 1.357 Dates of sampling 4 626,703.9 3.385 Sig. 0.020 0.213 0.007 0.184 0.135 0.088 0.014 0.251 0.009 0.165 0.308 0.330 0.133 0.584 0.008 0.044 0.178 0.364 0.076 0.308 0.0001 0.0008 0.193 0.014 in Table 1. Null hypothesis was rejected for both I/O ratios for all common individual VOC (rows) and for all sampling times (columns) assuring the type and amount of chemicals used with variable workload. F value for 8-h samples of I/O ratio of 3.445 with significance P value equal to 0.0001 had a significant variance among all common organic compounds due to their amounts and usage, and F value for sampling times of 4.685 with significance P value of 0.0008 had a 13 substantial variance among all sampling times reflecting the volume of workload. For 24-h sampling times, the I/O ratio ANOVA results had F value 1.357 with significance P value equal to 0.19, confirming insignificant variance, accepting the null hypothesis for all individual VOCs due to dispersion phenomena for prolonged times based on volatilities related to the vapor pressures, while F value of 3.385 with significance P value equal to 0.014 was observed for sampling times indicating significant variance (null hypothesis rejected) reflecting disparity in daily printing load. CO2, temperature and %RH were measured at the ‘offset’ printing facility depicting the buildup in the working hours, but HVAC system has regulated temperature and % RH and CO2 level did not cross 800 ppm and temperature and humidity levels stayed within specified comfort zone (Fig. 5). Figure 7 depicts ambient daily average concentrations of PM2.5, where error bars reflect hourly maximum and minimum values measured on the respective day. The daily mean PM2.5 concentrations in the ambient air and hourly maximum and minimum levels are shown in Fig. 8. The highest PM2.5 concentration was 105.6 μg m−3 on Saturday 7th October 2015. There was five days violation of WHO standard out of 8 days (WHO 2005). The measurements were repeated from 10th to 20th of September and 27th of October to 8th of November 2015 without any violation of WHO standard, due to light printing load experienced on the ‘offset’ printer during this time. PM2.5 levels were also measured in ambient air on the roof of an adjacent building to printing press from 4th to 13th October where PM2.5 levels were above the WHO standard most of the time due to persistent natural local meteorological dusty event. CO2 temperature and humidity values The recorded values of CO2, temperature and humidity for the period of 4 weeks (16th September to 12th October 2014) showed similar trend at all locations, due to the presence of almost similar types of equipments and same number of employees (CO2, temperature and humidity source). The CO2 levels increased from 400 to 600 ppm during working hours and stayed 600 ppm and later dropped to 400 ppm similar to ambient outdoor likewise on weekends about 400 ppm (Fig. 9). Temperature and humidity were controlled through HVAC system and ranged between 25–30 °C and 30–50%, respectively. Ozone levels Ozone concentrations were recorded every 10-s interval at four different sampling locations for a total recording time of 15 min each (Fig. 10). The highest concentration was at the ‘offset’ printing section during cleaning operation, providing International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Table 2 Measured VOC concentrations indoor from the ‘offset’ printing section and correspondingly outdoor and the ratio of indoor/outdoor for 8- and 24-h sampling period with OEL* and TLV 8-h TWA Compound C3H6 C5H12 (CH2)6 C3H3N CH3CHO C2H5OH C2H5CHO CH3COCH3 CH3COC3H7 C2H5COC3H7 CH3COC4H9 C5H11CHO C7H15CHO C8H17CHO C2H4Cl2 Cis-C2H2Cl2 CCl4 CHCl2CH2Cl p-C6H4Cl2 o- C6H4Cl2 R-12/R-22 R-114 CH3Cl C2H3Cl R-11 C6H5CH3 C6H5C2H5 C6H4(CH3)2 C6H3(CH3)3 a Date: 25–26 Aug. 2015 7:00–15:00 Offset Roof Offset 27.26 33.21 150.75 2.34 5.68 67.85 4.46 25.56 45.19 8.82 1.75 111.95 122.77 8.94 45.13 5.28 9.30 3.03 42.14 63.78 103.70 200.21 1.85 260.81 72.48 67.06 49.58 141.18 341.87 7.38 3.69 41.77 9.58 4.36 3.01 11.03 38.60 3.50 11.04 5.92 22.02 199.06 5.23 38.08 1.63 14.36 3.26 2.30 7.71 4.40 1.75 1.50 15.64 1.59 1.74 5.53 2.09 2.65 13.57 31.47 36.09 10.96 3.29 3.36 45.15 4.05 2.81 9.51 1.88 11.67 1.44 2.94 17.10 63.72 3.41 18.7 6.65 2.48 2.82 7.46 0.38 2.64 25.45 53.41 1.57 34.02 2.13 2.06 5.96 2.37 2.52 4.52 13.46 2.85 4.06 5.11 2.85 1.8 22.05 1.06 1.94 2.18 4.71 0.18 108.40 3.82 28.4 13.94 9.59 292.13 16.65 17.54 0.81 3.60 2.34 0.87 2.69 16.68 5.74 344.24 21.04 16.36 2.30 177.48 80.26 2.34 34.24 16.51 41.79 102.23 2.84 36.02 13.79 1.91 24.59 32.83 1.93 1.34 31.75 2.93 10.84 I/O Roof 28–29 Aug. 2015 I/O Offset Roof OEL ACGIH (TWA) I/O 62.05 25.02 2.48 52.62 32.92 1.6 244.78 7.77 31.51 331.74 9.67 34.29 903.94 6.24 144.75 1354.19 7.03 192.5 5.84 2.42 2.41 7.05 3.20 2.21 6.33 19.39 1.33 7.31 4.75 2.65 6.94 21.41 1.70 7.44 4.08 2.88 1,000,000 100,000 2,000 200,000a 1,000,000a 20,000 250,000 100,000 22.46 228.50 2.29 2.29 9.37 2.4 2.08 109.72 4.12 0.56 4.12 0.56 343.44 3.86 257.27 28.64 1.95 0.85 323.06 41.99 89.01 8.98 2.29 7.69 62.55 65.47 0.96 46.30 3.65 73.34 8.83 327.25 6.29 2.62 2.09 35.15 4.91 1.8 2.50 130.75 1.41 4.45 3.89 310.84 2.71 310.03 39.57 2.12 0.89 362.53 56.17 12.7 100,000 10,000 5,000 0.67 10,000 10,000 25,000 114.64 1,000,000 7.83 2.39 50,000 6.45 1,000 50,000 100,000 100,000 25,000 100,000 200,000 5,000 10,000 10,000 25,000 1,000,000a 1,000,000 50,000 1,000 1,000,000a 20,000 20,000 100,000 25,000 Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) exposure values (ASGIH 2017) *8-h TWA OEL recommended by the Labour Department of the Hong Kong Government (2002) Fig. 7 Daily average PM2.5 concentrations and hourly maximum and minimum levels in the ‘offset’ printing press 13 International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Fig. 8 Daily average PM2.5 concentrations and hourly maximum and minimum levels in ambient air over the roof of the adjacent to printing press building 700 31 29 27 25 100 23 40 21 CO2(ppm) Relative Humidity(%) 19 Temperature(°C) 17 10 9/16/2014 0:00 15 9/21/2014 0:00 9/26/2014 0:00 10/1/2014 0:00 Date and time Fig. 10 O3 levels (ppb) at the different sections at the press measured for 8 working hours (7:00–15:00) at different days for 15 min 13 10/6/2014 0:00 10/11/2014 0:00 Temperature (oC) CO2 (ppm) Relative humidity (%) Fig. 9 CO2 levels (ppm), relative humidity (RH) and temperature (°C) at the Photocopy section from 16 September to 12 October 2014 International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology all ozone precursors in abundance. There were also ozone emissions from photocopying section when the photocopiers were in use. Violation of indoor ozone standard is not that common due to NO neutralization accompanied with dispersion that keeps the ozone levels in check. Figure 10 shows recorded values for the ‘offset’ printing section for short duration of time during cleaning, which were higher than hourly KEPA standard, but hourly average values at different printing sections were always below the KEPA Standard (KEPA standard is 80 ppb hourly average and 60 ppb 8-h average). Conclusion This printing press in governmental institute is nicely ventilated and adequately air-conditioned. The CO2 levels, temperature and humidity were within specified limits for ASHREA standard and provided reasonable degree of comfort for all the employees. VOC levels were almost consistent and were above the KEPA specified limits specifically at the ‘offset’ printing section where excessive open use of organic chemicals (solvents). The highest concentration of VOC was halogenated compound group, constituting HCFC and CFCs, most commonly used refrigerant that has leaked from the refrigerant loop of HVAC systems during operation/maintenance. The least concentration was of aliphatic group consisting of the most commonly identified compound propene emitted either from biogenic source or from light vehicle exhaust. Aromatic group had dominant compound tri-methyl benzene different isomers (TMB) due to its excessive use as solvent, while in oxygenated group alcohols/ketones had high concentrations due to excessive use as solvents. Two-way ANOVA without replication was applied to 8-working-hour and 24-h sampling data of VOC. Twenty-four hour samples differed from 8-working-hour samples due to prolonged dispersion of pollutants emitted during operation. The results of 8-h sampling indicated that aliphatic, aromatic, oxygenated group and total VOC had a significant variance at different printing facilities, confirming particular chemicals application in specific printing application while, it was not that obvious in 24-h sampling of VOC. Null hypothesis was accepted for sampling days for both 8- and 24-h samplings for aliphatic, aromatic, oxygenated and total VOC. Halogenated group compounds data showed a insignificant variance at different printing facilities for 8-h sampling due to localized emission of HCFC/CFC from refrigeration loop of both central HVAC system and additional air conditioning split units. A different behavior was also noticed for 24-h samples for halogenated group compounds indicating substantial variance for both several printing facilities and sampling dates emitted from refrigeration cycle loop. ANOVA results for I/O ratio of all common VOC sampled for 8 working hours at the ‘offset’ printing section revealed significant variances among individual organic compounds (rows) and sampling dates (columns) reflecting quantities of VOC and usage and magnitude of the workload, respectively. Twenty-four hour samples showed similar trend with sampling times, but F value for common organic chemicals had indicated the least apparent variance due to dispersion for prolonged time. Ozone has been generated from photocopying section, and from the ‘offset’ printing section showed an increase in concentrations but was dispersed in the recirculation air without violating indoor air guidelines. Carbon dioxide levels were also measured indicating slightly higher levels that got dispersed with the adequate ventilation. Most of the times, PM2.5 levels exceeded indoor air quality standards (WHO 2005). 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