Particle emission characterisitcs of office printers
He, Congrong and Morawska, Lidia and Taplin, Len (2007) Particle emission characterisitcs of office printers. Environmental Science and Technology.
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Abstract
In modern society, printers are widely used in the office environment. This study investigated particle number and PM2.5 emissions from printers using the TSI SMPS, TSI CPC 3022 and 3025A TSI P-Trak and DustTrak. The monitoring of particle characteristics in a large open plan office, conducted continuously for over 48 hours, showed that particles generated by printers can significantly (p = 0.01) affect the submicrometer particle number concentration levels in the office. An investigation of the submicrometer particle emissions produced by each of the 62 printers used in the office building was also conducted. In terms of emission levels, the printers were divided into four classes of non-emitters, low, medium and high emitters, based on the particle concentrations in the immediate vicinity of the printers, after a short printing job. It was found that about 60% of the investigated printers did not emit submicrometer particles and of the 40% that did emit particles, 27% were high particle emitters. Particle emission characteristics from three different laser printers were also studied in an experimental chamber, which showed that particle emission rates are printer type–specific and are affected by toner coverage and cartridge age. The average particle number emission rates from a printer in the class “low emitter‿ were 0.04×109 particle min-1 (new cartridge with 5% toner coverage); 4.21×109 particle min-1 and 9.54×109 particle min-1 for a “medium emitter‿ (old cartridge with 5% and 50% toner coverage, respectively); and 41.1×109 particle min-1 (old cartridge, 5% toner coverage), 92.8×109 particle min-1 (old cartridge, 50% toner coverage), 76.3×109 particle min-1 (new cartridge, 5% toner coverage) and 159×109 particle min-1 (new cartridge, 50% toner coverage) for a “high emitter‿. Particle size distributions indicated that the higher emitters tended to generate more ultrafine particles (< 0.1 µm) than the lower emitters whilst the trend in PM2.5 emissions was different, with the “low emitter‿ in having a PM2.5 emission rate of (0.29 ±0.07 µg min-1) and the “high emitter‿ showing nearly zero mass emissions. While a more comprehensive study is still required to provide a better database of printer emission rates, as well as their chemical characteristics, the results from this study imply that submicrometer particle concentration levels in an office can be reduced by a proper choice of the printers.
| ID Code: | 8824 |
|---|---|
| Item Type: | Journal Article |
| Additional Information : | Self-archiving of the author-version is not yet supported by this publisher. For more information, please refer to the journal’s website (see hypertext link) or contact the author. Author contact details: l.morawska@qut.edu.au |
| Additional URLs : | |
| Keywords : | printer emissions, indoor air quality, particle source, particle number concentration, submicrometer particle, PM2, 5 |
| ISSN: | 0013-936X |
| Subjects: | Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification > PHYSICAL SCIENCES (020000) > OTHER PHYSICAL SCIENCES (029900) > Physical Sciences not elsewhere classified (029999) |
| Divisions: | QUT Faculties and Divisions > Faculty of Science and Technology Institutes > Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation |
| Copyright Owner : | Copyright 2007 American Chemical Society |
| Copyright Statement : | The contents of this journal can be freely accessed online via the ACS web page 12 months after publication. See hypertext link. Author contact details: l.morawska@qut.edu.au |
| Deposited On: | 31 Jul 2007 |
| Last Modified: | 23 Jan 2009 02:02 |
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