INDOOR AIR QUALITY IN CHANGING WORKPLACE DYNAMICS: THE CASE OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING

Date

2024-7-10

Author

Uçak, Emel

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As people spend a significant portion of their time indoors, such as in workplaces, workplace conditions are of great importance to their well-being. With technological advancements, Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies are increasingly integrated into workplaces, blending production and office spaces and affecting indoor air quality (IAQ) through emissions from various processes. However, these impacts remain underexplored, particularly regarding the coexistence of production and office spaces. This study investigates the impact of AM processes, including powder bed fusion - selective laser melting (PBF-SLM), powder bed fusion - selective laser sintering (PBF-SLS), and vat photopolymerization - stereolithography (VP-SLA) on IAQ parameters, including particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, formaldehyde, benzene, ethanol, nitrogen dioxide, carbon dioxide, and oxygen along with employees’ perception of IAQ in production and office spaces. Qualitative and quantitative data were acquired from semi-structured interviews, an Internet of Things-based custom-designed instrument collecting real-time pollutant data, and another custom-designed instrument gathering employee feedback on IAQ perception. The interview results highlighted employee concerns about IAQ. Field experiments revealed emissions of varying degrees concerning IAQ parameters in both production and office spaces during PBF-SLM, PBF-SLS, and VP-SLA operations. The emissions detected in the production spaces were higher compared to those recorded in the office space. The employee feedback indicated generally positive perceptions of IAQ in the office space but noted concerns in the production spaces during certain operational phases. The findings emphasize the need for facility adjustments to mitigate IAQ challenges associated with AM operations, particularly in the production spaces.

Subject Keywords

Additive Manufacturing, Indoor Air Quality, Internet of Things, Emissions, Workplace

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/110396

Collections

Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Thesis