The FLEC® has been validated and used in research for many years.
Below is a publication list of journal articles, abstracts, poster or oral presentations where the FLEC or CHEMATEC’s other products have been in focus.
If you have anything that can be added to the list, we encourage you to contact CHEMATEC.
2018 |
Kashyap, Durba; Agarwal, Tripti Concentration and factors affecting the distribution of phthalates in the air and dust: A global scenario Journal Article In: Science of The Total Environment, vol. 635, pp. 817 - 827, 2018, ISSN: 0048-9697. Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: DBP, DEHP, Indoor pollution, Plasticizer, PVC @article{KASHYAP2018817,Phthalates are ubiquitously present environmental contaminants. Air and dust are the most important mediums of exposure to phthalates. The present study reviews the presence of phthalates in the air and dust reported from different countries in the last ten years (2007–2017). The phthalate concentrations revealed wide heterogeneity with a mean and median value 6 ± 19 μg/m3 and 0.5 μg/m3 respectively in the air and 1.5 × 103 ± 2.2 × 103 μg/g and 7.8x102μg/g respectively in the dust. The highest phthalates levels in the air were reported from India (1.1 × 102 μg/m3) and in dust from Bulgaria (1.2 × 104 μg/g). Overall higher levels were reported from developing countries as compared to developed countries. Di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and Di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) were found to be predominant in both air and dust. Temperature, humidity, air exchange rate, building material and indoor maintenance were reported as the important factors influencing the levels of phthalates in the air and dust. In addition to policy level interventions, reducing the use of phthalate containing materials and controlling the factors which enhance the emission from existing sources can help in reducing human exposure to phthalates. |
2016 |
Wu, Yaoxing; Cox, Steven S; Xu, Ying; Liang, Yirui; Won, Doyun; Liu, Xiaoyu; Clausen, Per A; Rosell, Lars; Benning, Jennifer L; Zhang, Yinping; Little, John C A reference method for measuring emissions of SVOCs in small chambers Journal Article In: Building and Environment, vol. 95, pp. 126 - 132, 2016, ISSN: 0360-1323. Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: DEHP, Inter-laboratory study, Phthalates, Reference method, Semi-volatile organic compounds @article{WU2016126,Semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) are indoor air pollutants that may have significant adverse effects on human health. Although emissions of volatile chemicals from building materials and consumer products are usually characterized in small chambers, few chamber studies have been conducted for SVOCs due to the challenges associated with analysis and the lack of validation procedures. There is an urgent need for a reliable and accurate chamber test method to verify these measurements. A reference method employing a specially-designed chamber has been developed and is undergoing extensive evaluation. A pilot inter-laboratory study (ILS) has been conducted with six laboratories performing chamber tests under identical conditions for di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP). Results from this study showed inter-laboratory variations of 24% for DEHP emission rates, with closer agreement observed among intra-laboratory measurements for most of the participating laboratories. A mechanistic emission model fits well to the measured concentration profiles, demonstrating the feasibility of the proposed reference method to independently assess laboratory performance and validate SVOC emission tests. |
2010 |
Clausen, Per Axel; Liu, Zhe; Xu, Ying; Kofoed-Sørensen, Vivi; Little, John C Influence of air flow rate on emission of DEHP from vinyl flooring in the emission cell FLEC: Measurements and CFD simulation Journal Article In: Atmospheric Environment, vol. 44, no. 23, pp. 2760 - 2766, 2010, ISSN: 1352-2310. Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: CFD, Chamber, DEHP, Emission, FLEC, PVC @article{CLAUSEN20102760,The emission of di-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) from one type of vinyl flooring with ∼15% (w/w) DEHP as plasticizer was measured at 22 °C in five FLECs + one blank FLEC (Field and Laboratory Emission Cell). Initially, the flow through all FLECs was 450 ml min−1. After 689 days the flows were changed to 1000 ml min−1, 1600 ml min−1, 2300 ml min−1, and 3000 ml min−1, respectively, in four FLECs, and kept at 450 ml min−1 in one FLEC. Air samples were collected from the effluent air at regular intervals. After 1190 days the experiments were terminated and the interior surfaces of all six FLECs were rinsed with methanol to estimate the internal surface concentrations of DEHP. The DEHP air concentration and specific emission rate (SER) at steady state was estimated for the five different flow rates. The steady-state concentrations decreased slightly with increasing air flow with only the two highest flow rates resulting in significantly lower concentrations. In contrast, the SERs increased significantly. Despite large variation, the internal surface concentrations appeared to decrease slightly with increasing FLEC flow. Computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations suggest that the interior gas and surface concentrations were roughly uniform for the low flow case (450 ml min−1), under which, the partitioning between the FLEC internal surface and chamber air was examined. Although paired t-tests showed no difference between CFD and experimental results for DEHP air concentrations and SERs at steady-state conditions, CFD indicated that the experimental DEHP surface concentrations in the FLECs were underestimated. In conclusion, the experiments showed that the emission of DEHP from vinyl flooring is subject to “external” control and that the SER is strongly and positively dependent on the air exchange rate. However, the increased SER almost compensates for the decrease in gas-phase concentration caused by the increased air exchange. |
2007 |
Clausen, Per Axel; Xu, Ying; Kofoed-Sørensen, Vivi; Little, John C; Wolkoff, Peder The influence of humidity on the emission of di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) from vinyl flooring in the emission cell “FLEC” Journal Article In: Atmospheric Environment, vol. 41, no. 15, pp. 3217 - 3224, 2007, ISSN: 1352-2310, (Indoor Air 2005 - 10th International Conference on Indoor Air Quality and Climate (Part I)). Abstract | Links | BibTeX | Tags: DEHP, Emission, Humidity, Plasticizer, Vinyl flooring @article{CLAUSEN20073217,Asthma in children appears to be associated with both phthalate esters and dampness in buildings. An important question is whether the concentrations of phthalate esters correlate with dampness (expressed as relative humidity—RH) in indoor air. The objective was to study the influence of RH on the specific emission rate (SER) of di-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) from one type of vinyl flooring in the well characterized Field and Laboratory Emission Cell (FLEC). The vinyl flooring with ca. 17% (w/w) DEHP as plasticizer was tested in 6 FLECs at 22°C. The RH in the 6 FLECs was 10%, 30%, 50% (in triplicate) and 70%. The RH was changed after 248d in 2 of the 50%-FLECs to 10% and 70%, and to 50% in the 10%-and 70%-FLECs. The data show that the SER of DEHP from vinyl flooring in FLECs during a 1yr period is independent of the RH. A new physically based emission model for semivolatile organic compounds was found to be consistent with the experimental data and independent of the RH. The model helps to explain the RH results, because it appears that RH does not significantly influence any of the identified controlling mechanisms. |