How well do you believe the air quality is on your campus? Our study set out to investigate the pollution produced by on campus restaurants at USD and whether this pollution is spreading to adjacent classroom spaces.  Two key air pollutants were studied; particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5), tiny particles that are linked to both lung and heart problems and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a gas that is linked to respiratory issues.

Air pollution is a concern as the World Health Organization traces around 7 million deaths a year to this issue. The LA Times reported on the negative affect restaurants have on air quality. This article was then confirmed when our team read a study done in South Korea in which they found areas near restaurants had higher levels of air pollutants. While researching health effects of these pollutants I found that air pollutants from outside the environment were able to enter the indoor environment and cause negative effects on our health. Understanding how air pollutants travel inside can make a difference in how our society deals with this epidemic.

Our main goal for this experiment was to test PM2.5 and NO2 levels inside restaurants and nearby classrooms to understand the patterns for ensuring safe air quality for the campus. We hypothesized that both air pollutants will have higher levels near the kitchen and decrease as you got further. But neighboring rooms to restaurants will have higher levels than typical levels in the same building. However, NO2 will only be a factor if combustion is occurring.

For the tests, we measured air quality at three restaurants (Aromas Café, Oliva, and Bert’s Bistro) on the University of San Diego campus. Using 3 air quality “Flow” sensors, we recorded the levels of PM2.5 and No2 in five locations for each of the restaurants: near the cooking area, the furthest area inside the restaurant, in the hallway the classroom is connected by, in a nearby classroom, and the opposite end of the building for a standard (not taken in Aromas as method wasn’t standardized at the time). These measurements were all taken during operational hours to capture pollution levels while cooking was occurring. Allowing us to compare the pollutant level variations based on the proximity to the source.

The results confirmed part of the hypothesis: PM2.5 were higher closest to the kitchen in all restaurants. However, PM2.5 levels dropped substantially as we furthered from the kitchen. In Aromas PM2.5 decreased outside of the restaurant but saw a drastic increase from near the kitchen to across the restaurant. While at Bert’s and Oliva PM2.5 decreased as distance increased away from the kitchen. Interestingly, NO2 levels were largely low near the kitchen but increased in the hallways and in the classrooms, raising more questions on how the ventilation is shared amongst the building.

While our results mostly support that PM2.5 is increased near kitchens it is still not completely support due to a discrepancy, but it is refuted by NO2 being more sporadic. These discrepancies can be seen through the different type of cooking equipment as they are all different specialty restaurants. They can also be concluded to errors in the measurement devices. In order to draw significant conclusions from the data, higher accuracy sensors would need to be used, but they serve as a good tool for pilot studies to see if areas have bad levels of air pollutants. Some of these buildings tested also have dorm rooms attached to spaces above, which would condemn some students to longer exposure periods over their time at the institution. But according to the study it does not seem the neighboring classroom spaces are being affected by the air pollutants emitted by the restaurants. This study does highlight the need for more research on how indoor air pollutants travel in spaces that share ventilation.

Article Reference:

Yong, Gwang-Soon, et al. “Spatial Mapping of Air Pollution Hotspots around Commercial Meat-Cooking Restaurants Using Bicycle-Based Mobile Monitoring.” MDPI, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, 17 Aug. 2024, www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/15/8/991. Accessed 16 Oct. 2024.

Image Reference (All images came from the same source):

Kumar, Pradeep, et al. “Critical Review on Emerging Health Effects Associated with the Indoor Air Quality and Its Sustainable Management.” Science of The Total Environment 872 (2023): 162163. Print.