Characterization of decay and emission rates of ultrafine particles in indoor ice rink

The purposes of this study were to determine indoor ultrafine particle (UFP, diameter <100 nm) levels in ice rinks and to characterize UFP decay and emission rates. All 15 public ice rinks in Seoul were investigated for UFP and carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations. Three ice rinks did not show peaks in UFP concentrations, and one ice rink used two resurfacers simultaneously. High peaks of UFP and CO concentrations were observed when the resurfacer was operated. The average air change rate in the 11 ice rinks was 0.21 ± 0.13/h. The average decay rates of UFP number concentrations measured by the P-Trak and DiSCmini were 0.54 ± 0.21/h and 0.85 ± 0.34/h, respectively. The average decay rate of UFP surface area concentration was 0.33 ± 0.15/h. The average emission rates of UFP number concentrations measured by P-Trak and DiSCmini were 1.2 × 10(14) ± 6.5 × 10(13) particles/min and 3.3 × 10(14) ± 2.4 × 10(14) particles/min, respectively. The average emission rate of UFP surface area concentration was 3.1 × 10(11) ± 2.0 × 10(11) μm(2)/min. UFP emission rate was associated with resurfacer age. DiSCmini measured higher decay and emission rates than P-Trak due to their different measuring mechanisms and size ranges.