Modeling emissions of svocs from vinyl flooring

SVOCs used as plasticizers, flame retardants, and biocides are associated with a variety of health concerns including asthma in children, premature breast development in young girls, and damage of DNA in human sperm. A model is proposed to simulate SVOC emissions from vinyl flooring. The model is used to examine DEHP emissions from PVC flooring obtained in a recent study. Fairly good agreement between model simulation and experimental data is obtained. Because of the much lower vapor pressure, which results in a very high partition coefficient (K), SVOC emissions are subject to "external" control. The external environment parameters (K-s, n and h(m)) have great influence on emission rate, while the internal material parameter (D) has almost no influence. A Freundlich isotherm is used to characterize the equilibrium between the chamber surface and the chamber air. The Freundlich isotherm parameters (K-s and n) are different for different chamber surface materials. The convective mass transfer coefficient h(m) controls the initial emission rate.