ACs accelerate transport of pollutants from kitchen to bedrooms, says study

The air conditioners accelerate transport of pollutants from kitchen to bedrooms, a recent study conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN) on indoor air pollution has found.

While the study found presence of sub-micron particles due to cooking and incense burning, the indoor-to-outdoor (I/O) ratios increased during cooking, with the kitchen having the highest ratio and the bedroom the lowest.

“It was also observed that ACs accelerated the transport of pollutants from the kitchen to the bedrooms. Interestingly, the I/O ratios dropped significantly at night when the balcony doors were closed, indicating the apartment’s protective role against outdoor particulate matter (PM),” the study revealed.