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Dyson investigates the effect of lockdown on air pollution

Dyson announces global project using wearable air monitoring technology to investigate air quality changes in cities during and after the COVID-19 lockdown period


MALMESBURY, United Kingdom, 16 June 2020: Participants in 14 cities globally are using Dyson’s air quality backpack to collect air quality data, to generate snapshots of their personal exposure to air pollution during and after lockdown, the company said through a Press release.

Dyson’s air quality backpack, which was developed for a research study with Kings College London and the Greater London Authority, has on-board sensors, a battery pack and GPS, allowing data to be collected on the go, the company said. Re-working existing sensing technology used in Dyson air purifiers, engineers designed the portable air monitoring device, engineering it to be smaller, lighter, and more portable, whilst still accurately capturing PM2.5, PM10 and VOC and NO2 exposure, the company added.

According to the release, the global project spans three continents and 14 cities, including Dubai, London, Milan, New Delhi and New York City. The collected data will be compared with local city air quality sensor data and indoor air quality data from Dyson’s connected purifiers, to develop a picture of the changes in air quality in cities globally throughout this period, the company said

Phase one involved participants wearing the backpack to collect air quality data during lockdown. In line with local government guidelines, participants wore the backpacks during permitted lockdown travel, such as visits to the grocery store, daily exercise routines or a key worker’s commute, Dyson said. This data will give us a snapshot of the air quality the participant was exposed to on a typical day in lockdown, it added.

With lockdown restrictions in cities now being lifted, phase two will commence, the company noted in the release. Participants will then travel with the backpack on the same route they took during lockdown, to build a second snapshop of air pollution exposure outside of the lockdown period. Dyson engineers will compare these two data sets, to better understand the effect of lockdown on the day-to-day air quality exposure of individuals living in cities, it said.

Alex Knox, Vice President of Environmental Care, Dyson, said: “While it has been widely reported that air quality in some cities has improved during the lockdown period, initial data insights from Dyson’s connected purifiers indicate a small but consistent increase in indoor NO2 and VOC levels in cities during lockdown. It will be interesting to monitor these changes as cities emerge from lockdown status, to further understand the factors that impact both indoor and outdoor air quality.”

The combined data sets will help to give an indication of the effect of lockdown on indoor and outdoor air pollution in cities globally, bolstered by findings from the pre-existing static outdoor air quality sensor network, the company said, adding that available outdoor air quality data from these sources indicate a reduction in NO2 levels in major cities under lockdown, possibly due to the decline in diesel vehicles on the roads as a result of the lockdown restrictions.

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