MODELLING THE FORMALDEHYDE EMISSION FROM MULTI-LAYER WORK SURFACES USED IN OFFICE WORKSTATION SYSTEMS

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from various sources may adversely affect human health,comfort and performance. In particular, formaldehyde has been identified as a major indoor pollutantwhose emission is controlled by workstation systems. Engineered wood products such asparticleboards have widely been used with wood veneer and laminate to form work surfaces ofworkstation systems, which is a major formaldehyde emission component. The emission rate offormaldehyde depends on the composition of each material layer, temperature and moisture content inthe materials. The objective of this study is to determine the long-term formaldehyde emissioncharacteristics of multi-layer work surfaces such as a wood veneer over a particleboard core. The workcomprised experimental and numerical investigation of the emission characteristics. To reproduce theexperimental results, a numerical simulation model for coupled heat, air, moisture and pollutanttransport in porous materials and wall assemblies was used1. A parametric study for the modelparameters under consideration, such as the partition coefficient, the diffusion coefficient and the initialformaldehyde content in each material layer showed that all parameters decide about the formaldehydeemissions. In particular, the initial conditions have a major influence on the evolution of the emissionfactor. It can be concluded that an unambiguous determination of all parameters is difficult since theproblem has no unique solution yet. Further research needs can be identified.