Modeling Indoor PM$_{2.5}$ Exposure During Retrofits: Plastic Film Barriers and a Quadratic Baseline Approach

TL;DR

This study quantifies indoor PM2.5 exposure during retrofit barriers using low-cost sensors and a quadratic baseline, revealing a trade-off between dust shielding and increased background levels, with implications for indoor air quality management.

Contribution

Introduces a quadratic baseline method to analyze low-cost sensor data for indoor PM2.5 during retrofit barriers, enabling better source attribution without outdoor monitoring.

Findings

Barrier reduced large construction spikes indoors.

Passive build-up contributed 45% to excess PM2.5.

Baseline PM2.5 levels increased during barrier use.

Abstract

Temporary plastic film barriers are widely used to separate occupied rooms from exterior renovation zones, yet their effect on indoor particulate exposure is poorly quantified. We monitored PM$_{2.5}$ in a Tampa, Florida, apartment for 48 days with a low-cost optical sensor (Temtop LKC-1000S+), spanning pre-barrier, barrier-on, and post-barrier periods. A quadratic baseline was fitted to "background" minutes devoid of identifiable indoor sources, allowing excess concentrations ($\Delta$PM) to be partitioned into facade work, cooking, and passive accumulation without outdoor co-monitoring. The barrier prevented large construction spikes indoors but curtailed natural ventilation, doubling the mean baseline from 1.9 to 3.9 $\mu$g m$^{-3}$. During this stage, passive build-up accounted for $45\,\%$ of the daily excess dose, with facade work and cooking contributing $31\,\%$ and $24\,\%$, respectively. Once the new window was installed and evening airing resumed, the baseline fell to 0.8 $\mu$g m$^{-3}$, the lowest of the campaign. Our findings highlight the trade-off between dust shielding and background elevation and demonstrate that simple polynomial fitting bolsters low-cost IAQ diagnostics in mechanically unventilated dwellings. The framework is readily transferable to other retrofits; future studies should pair indoor sensing with outdoor references and multi-room deployments to refine infiltration estimates.