ASSESSMENT OF CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL CONTAMINANTS AND IMPROVEMENT OF AIR QUALITY IN AIR-CONDITIONED URBAN BUSES

ABSTRACT

The study assessed the quality of air in air-conditioned urban buses and recommended interventions on how to improve it. Specifically, the study had accomplished the following: (i) Assessed the concentration of chemical contaminants in air-conditioned urban buses using both active and passive samplers. The chemical contaminants assessed included volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), sulfur dioxides (SO2), and nitrogen dioxides (NO2); (ii) Assessed the concentration of biological contaminants present in the air-conditioned buses; (iii) Recommended interventions on how to reduce the concentration of contaminants to acceptable level such as the use of filters and ultra-violet light.