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Reference Materials for Building Product Emission Characterization

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Handbook of Indoor Air Quality

Abstract

Building products contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which can be emitted into indoor air and result in human exposures in the indoor environment. The emission rate, commonly measured in environmental chambers, is a key parameter to characterize the emission of a chemical of interest from materials in a building. Reference materials with known emission rates can be used to characterize the uncertainty associated with building product emission testing. This chapter describes VOC emission testing and explores the types of reference materials that have been used to validate product emission testing. Detailed descriptions of five types of reference materials are presented, addressing their emission mechanisms, production methods, application protocols, and use in inter-laboratory emission tests. This chapter also describes some of the causes of uncertainty associated with reference materials, emission testing systems, analytical measurement methods, and inter-laboratory study procedures.

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Disclaimer

Certain commercial equipment, instruments, or materials are identified in this chapter in order to specify the procedures adequately. Such identification is not intended to imply recommendation or endorsement by NIST, nor is it intended to imply that the materials or equipment identified are necessarily the best available for the purpose.

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Correspondence to Wenjuan Wei .

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© 2022 This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the U.S.; foreign copyright protection may apply

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Poppendieck, D., Wei, W., Gong, M. (2022). Reference Materials for Building Product Emission Characterization. In: Zhang, Y., Hopke, P.K., Mandin, C. (eds) Handbook of Indoor Air Quality. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-7680-2_25

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