Air quality

Real-time monitoring of particulate matter, gases, volatile compounds and pathogens and air quality control in outdoor, industrial, urban and indoor settings are now even more challenging. In part this is due to Spain’s new Climate Change Law, restrictions on pollutant emissions in industrial and/or urban environments and new exposure limits resulting from the reclassification of the hazardousness of chemicals, such as respirable crystalline silica dust. The problem is further compounded by a shortage of robust, low-cost technologies.

At ITENE we evaluate outdoor and indoor air quality in industrial and/or urban environments, detect particulate matter and pathogenic gases, draw up reports, design control measures and bring predictive models into play to make our solutions more efficient.

We also have the tools and skills to assess air quality in urban environments, monitoring pollutants such as gases, volatile compounds and/or particulate matter. We also process data gathered via software and recommend measures to mitigate their effects, predict how the situation will evolve and assess potential health hazards for people. We additionally monitor indoor air quality, identify pollution sources and predict their likely impact on health.

Outdoor, industrial, urban and indoor air quality monitoring

Traditional measurement methods used for air quality monitoring in urban environments have high operating and maintenance costs. In addition, there are no robust, proven alternatives and there is little acceptance of low-cost alternative methods in the regulatory and scientific community due to the lack of correlation studies with standardised and accepted methods.

The solution is to develop sturdy methods which are validated against legacy counterparts and customised for expected conditions of use. At ITENE we have specialised tools and services in place for monitoring outdoor, industrial, urban and indoor air.

1. Air quality monitoring in indoor industrial environments and outdoor settings

We ensure the safety of indoor processes and environments through low-cost sensors for measuring gases, volatile compounds, particulate matter, nanoparticles and bioaerosols. We employ emission measurement and control systems coupled with IoT solutions for interfacing with ventilation and/or filtration systems for smart air quality control.

We work with the following tools and mechanisms:

Respirable crystalline silica dust

There is overwhelming evidence that respirable crystalline silica dust is carcinogenic. This constitutes a challenge for businesses across a range of industries including the construction, ceramic tile, natural stone processing and quarrying sectors. In fact, some of the respirable dust in processes where dust is generated from silica-containing materials contains crystalline silica particles.

The hazards associated with exposure to crystalline silica dust can be controlled, mitigated or eliminated entirely with appropriate measures. Risk assessment is also required under current regulations.

2. Urban air monitoring

We have proprietary sensors for measuring CO2 and other environmental pollutants such as CO, CO2, NOm NO2, O3, SO2, H2Sm NH3, VOCs and particulate matter. We additionally develop smart systems to predict potential pollution damage and implement mitigation measures. We draw on a range of tools and mechanisms:

3. Monitoring indoor air quality

At ITENE we deploy sensors to measure CO2 and other relevant indoor pollutants coupled with biosensors for pathogens present in the form of bioaerosols or liquid surfaces or matrices. We leverage the following tools and processes in our services:

• Sensors for CO2, temperature, humidity, VOCs
• Multi-pollutant sensors for various chemical gases
• Odour detection sensors
• Pathogen biosensors (bacteria, viruses and fungi)
• IoT data acquisition and control software
• Artificial intelligence-based models for predicting potential health damage.
• Pollutant dispersion analysis tapping computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modelling
• Development of pollution containment/mitigation measures

Air monitoring benefits and outcomes