Did you know the air quality in a car can be much worse than you have ever imagined? With an uplifting accident rate, it might be one main reason for many such catastrophic incidents. If you are a driver, you can imagine, one mistake can make a pretty big situation middle of the road. Also, almost everyone in the community is using private vehicles in their daily lifestyle, We decided, to discuss the air quality inside a car, how can it get worse and what can we do to fix this from Todays know your facts. So Get ready, buckle up your seat belts. Here we go.
Why the Air Quality Indoor of a Car is So Polluted?
You might be a little bit of confusion. Because we normally feel inside of a car like so refreshing and comfortable than outside, so how can it be so-called “hazardous”. Even we assume so there is a sort of different idea in between the scientific community.
For a long period of time scientists have researched air quality, mostly related to outdoor areas. Air pollution, industrial impacts, and other vast areas of air contaminant pollutants, as the mainstream in that field.
They tried to make the direct-indirect link between our outdoor activities/existence and polluted surrounding. But recently they have realized that these air pollutants are much actively developed impact on indoor personnel other than outdoor.
Even without our attention most of the silent diseases are developed with this bad indoor quality. When this is related to a car, such an impact can cause vast damage in a shorter period of time.
The main reason behind bad air quality in a car than outside is, its most cars take the outside emission directly into cars and recirculate around the cabin.
Even though some of the luxury vehicles are fully sealed, most of the community does not have a properly sealed indoor cabin.
Due to its recirculation system that polluted sit can be a longer period of time creating an unhealthy environment.
The main factors behind which can manage or make this situation worst are the following.
- Cabin recirculation options
- Fan speed
- Ventilation mode
You need to have a piece of proper knowledge to manage them to create a better atmosphere inside.
Normally when we consider car air filters you may wonder, why can’t they manage to filter these air pollutants as mentioned in their product catalog. Actually, they do. The issue is they have been designed specially to filter large particles, not the micro small particles which create sort engine combustion in the road.
Normally, these air contaminants can impact your health level in a short amount of time period while you are in the car.
Also, when you are exposed for a long period of time, results can be pretty risky to your health.
You can easily create a condition of impaired decision-making when you are exposed to the bad indoor atmosphere in the car. Also by getting sleepy, it can make the other significant situation that causes a big accident.
Also when these situation is being dealt with a long period of time it can manage turned in to serious health concern, like elevated heart rate and blood pressure which call many other dangerous health issues.
Mostly apart from fan speed, ventilation mode, and cabin air recirculation of the car, there are other reasons which be helpful to create this situation.
- Near the heavy traffics (vehicle location)
- Vehicle speed
- Number of passengers inside of the car
So if you are inside the car, depending on these factors and car ventilation settings, you might feel like you are inside a small box of holes for gas exchange. The above parameters decide how much you should deal with outside air depending on your requirements.
What Air Contaminants be there?
Several air pollutants can be inside the car cabin when your car is exposed to road traffic jams and other polluted areas for a longer period of time. Apart from the industrial air pollutants and other factors, engine combustion side products are the main reason for the number downgrade of car cabin air quality.
1.0 Particulate Matter(PM10/PM2.5/PM1)
Particulate Matter (PM) is one of the main side products emit after internal combustion in the engine.
The numbers 10,2.5,1 are stands for the size of the particulate matter in microns, same or lesser than that. When they come smaller, like PM 1.0, those particles have access into our circulatory system through our lungs and develop many sicknesses.
Most people who smoke or by the roads are a category which exposes to these air contaminants eventually apart from those who ride in road traffics.
Studies show these air contaminants have some direct effect on the diseases like heart-rate variability, thrombosis, and inflammation. Mostly PM 2.5 is the main factor that does the damage here.
2.0 Carbon’s Oxides (Carbon Monoxide – CO / Carbon dioxide –CO2)
Carbon’s oxides are the most famous air pollutants you can imagine in between a traffic jam. The main reason behind this is the gas created by the fuel, mostly hydrocarbons.
When there is internal combustion due to lack of oxygen CO carbon monoxides are generated and CO2 Carbon dioxides are generated in full combustion of that hydrocarbons. These oxides are colorless and odorless.
When you are exposed to CO2 in a closed area like a car cabin, there might be a health impact unlike outside.
Most there might be headaches, dizziness, restlessness, a tingling or pins or needles feeling, difficulty breathing, sweating, tiredness, increased heart rate, elevated blood pressure, coma, asphyxia, and convulsions.
Unlike CO2, CO is very harmful.
When you are exposed to CO it can connect with the hemoglobin in your blood and malfunction the oxygen supplement to the brain. It can lose your consciousness and suffocate.
While you are driving it can become a serious problem anyway. That’s why carbon monoxide is also known as a silent killer.
3.0 Ultrafine Particles (UFPs)
These particles are particles smaller than 0.1 microns in size. Therefore, in polluted most particulate matters are represented by UFPs.
Due to its small size, it capable of access into the bloodstream very easily than other PMs. Therefore, it can easily access many organs through that and develop many health issues.
For example lung inflammation, high blood pressure, ischemic heart disease, heart attacks, heart failure, nerve damage, brain damage, digestive problems, diabetes, cancer risk, skin damage can be given.
4.0 Nitrogen Oxides (NO- Nitrogen Monoxide/ NO2- Nitrogen dioxide)
Most of the Nitrogen Oxides gases are created under high energy naturally. It occurs when there is lighting happen or inside the combustion engine with natural often existing Nitrogen gas.
Out of these oxides, NO is the gas generated from the above activities and it quickly converts into NO2 which is deep orange in color and pungent acrid odor.
Apart from an acidic gas, NO2 Consider as a primary pollutant gas.
If you are exposed, you NO2 in high concentrations there might be serious health issues immediately. You can get coughing, wheezing, lung irritation, reduced lung function, cardiovascular damage, breathing difficulty, fever, death, and many more.
5.0 Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)
These not consider liquids. they are just emitted as gases from various solids or liquids which can be generated through fuel combustion inside vehicles’ engines.
Same as other air contaminants this also can do a considerable amount of damage directly and indirectly.
If you are inside a car cabin VOC gives sort of Irritation of eyes, nose, throat, Headaches, Nausea/vomiting, Dizziness, and other breathing issues. So it is indirect guidance to an accident if you are inside the speedy running road.
If you experiencing these gases for a long period of time it may increase your risk of Cancer, Liver Damage, and also Kidney problems too.
Apart from these, there might be several air pollutants that can have stored inside a car cabin while your experiencing joyful traffic.
How can we upgrade Air quality inside Car cabin?
There are several things we can do to manage and enhance the air quality inside our car. First thing first, clean inside well.
1.0 Go for Super Clean
As we mentioned above, inside of a car recirculation process is happening several times as a part of a ventilation process. But then this recirculation process keeps going all of the pollutants are trying to hide inside the car itself.
Carpets and seat covers are perfect places that absorbing them and release them when there is a perfect environment condition has been created. Therefore, once in a while you need to clean them as same as you clean them outside.
But the issue is you cannot clean it following the same procedure which is followed for outside. Professional help is most recommended there, otherwise, there might be serious damage to the car cabin.
Mostly they remove absorbed pollutants by spraying the hot water and soap on inside and vacuuming it up deeply is the best way.
Don’t use chemical fabric so much, otherwise, they also can absorb into carpets and things can get worst.
After a proper clean up You have to keep it outside, warm by keeping all doors open for several hours under sunlight and breeze. Otherwise, mold and other harmful pathogens can be easily grown up there after several days.
2.0 Use a Car Air Purifier
Usage of a car air purifier is another practical way of cleaning indoor condition which can use as a portable device. Depend on your car cabin size you can do a selection for better filtration.
Same as normal air purifiers, these are capable of keeping your indoor air safe by contributing to the recirculation of the car by sending all the air contaminants through specific filters.
HEPA filter- Car Air Purifier are mostly recommended here.
But the practical issue is we cannot have a guarantee to say 100% filtration can be achieved through these. But there might certain amount of high purification of indoor airways before it approaches your lungs.
Also, if you are using one make sure to clean and replace the filters from time to time in regular time periods.
3.0 At traffic Jams or Red Light Stops
Make Sure to keep higher the distance between vehicles. Otherwise, after staying in a while with low air combustion, a load of air pollutants can be released on your car by the car next to you.
Therefore, try to keep your windows shut as better as possible every time. Because there are several pollutants with no odor nor a color.
Switch on the car recirculation system. go for the better filtration.
Also, try to avoid heavy vehicles following like buses and trucks. These vehicles include bigger engines with diesel fuels. Other than normal engines these vehicles release a higher amount of air pollutants with lower combustion with diesel.
4.0 Minimize use of Car Fresheners
Most cars are widely using car air freshener are VOCs, which have harmful for your health as mentioned earlier.
Minimize that usage is the better way of controlling that use in between the car community.
Now you can see car air fresheners or deodorizers come as non-VOC liquids or non-liquidities which is good motivation for keeping as good air quality inside as possible.
5.0 Try to go with Electric vehicles
We all know “Go green” is the new trend which comes with industrial evaluation to create a lessor polluted world for our future.
We all know the use of fossil-burning vehicle culture makes a big drawback contribution to that plan. Today most of the community lately tries to use electric vehicles even though they sort of expensive.
Even there are fossil burnings and air pollution in creating electricity, on other hand we can make another part to reduce that fuel burning as a possible unit they find a replacement for electricity production.
Apart from these, the most practical ways of stay out of pollutants inside away is the stay out of traffic jams and manage your timetable as flexibly as possible. If so, your problems might be reduced to ground level which is the best result you can be expected.
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