Birmingham’s Clean Air Fellows publish first paper

Just over two years ago, we reported that the University of Birmingham had appointed three Clean Air Fellows, who would together for a MSc in Air Pollution Management and Control, through a fellowship programme, delivered by the Clean Air Fund, University of Birmingham, and McCall MacBain Foundation.

One of the trio, Ademi Lejla subsequently returned to her home in North Macedonia (one of the most polluted countries in Europe) where she is now a Research Assistant at the Max van der Stoel Institute and a part-time lecturer at the South East European University.

The other two young scientists, Owain Rose, and Catrin Rathbone, have now published the first paper by McCall MacBain Clean Air Fellows, titled ‘Investigating Indoor Air Pollution Sources and Student’s Exposure Within School Classrooms: Using a Low-Cost Sensor and Source Apportionment Approach’

Essentially, they have developed a low-cost method of measuring indoor air quality in schools by installing air quality sensors in three classrooms at a Cardiff high school, allowing them to identify whether the source of air pollution within the classrooms was coming from within or without.

Owain Rose, who was a co-author on the project, said: commented: ‘By combining low-cost air pollution sensors with algorithms to determine pollution source, we can understand the factors affecting indoor air quality within a typical UK school – measuring air pollution concentrations during a typical school week and subsequent holiday period.’

The team studied air quality in the school over two weeks. During the first week, the school was fully operational, the second coincided with school holidays and was only occupied by a handful of staff members.

The three classrooms were chosen carefully. The religious studies classroom is on the ground floor, furthest from the main road. The English classroom is on the first floor, nearest the road. The Home Economics room falls between the two in terms of distance from road but is used for cooking lessons for up to two hours a day.

The full research can be found here.

The team found that PM1 and PM2.5 was generally entering the school from outside, while PM10 sources were mainly from indoor sources. However, the levels were never found to breach WHO guidelines. 

Specifically:

• Between 93-98% of PM1 originated outside the building.
• Between 74-89% of PM2.5 originated outside the building.
• Between 19-40% of PM10 originated outside the building.

It was also found that differences in classroom PM concentration was affected by whether the room was carpeted or hard floored.

The other participant in our story, and joint co-author Catrin Rathbone, said: ‘Our approach is easily translated to other indoor locations worldwide and could be scaled due to its low cost. It would allow air quality management in locations crucial for the public health and educational outcomes of children.’

In response to the first paper being published by McCall MacBain Clean Air Fellows, the Clean Air Fund’s Imogen Martineau said: ‘It has been amazing to see the success of the first Clean Air Fellow cohort. Owain and Catrin have been amazing ambassadors, and it is great to see them continuing their clean air journeys through taking jobs with leading environmental consultancies that specialise in air quality.’

Professor Francis Pope, from the University of Birmingham, added: ‘The Fellowships are designed to lay the foundations for atmospheric scientists to progress in this field and contribute to resolving atmospheric pollution issues in their countries. I’m delighted to see Owain and Catrin – two members of our first cohort – making such a valuable contribution to the air pollution debate with their first published paper.’