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Analysis of institutional authors

Borrull Riera, AnnaAuthorVallecillos Marsal, LauraAuthorMarcé RmAuthorBorrull FAuthor

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Article

Passive sampling to control air quality in schools: Uptake rate determination and application

Publicated to:Indoor Air. 30 (5): 1005-1017 - 2020-09-01 30(5), DOI: 10.1111/ina.12684

Authors: Vallecillos, Laura; Borrull, Anna; Marce, Rosa Maria; Borrull, Francesc

Affiliations

Eurecat, Technology Centre of Catalonia - Author
Eurecat, Water Air & Soil Unit, Ctr Tecnol Catalunya, Tarragona, Spain - Author
Univ Rovira & Virgili, Dept Analyt Chem & Organ Chem, Sescelades Campus,Marcelli Domingo S-N, E-43007 Tarragona, Spain - Author
Univ Rovira & Virgili, Dept Biochem & Biotechnol, Sescelades Campus, Tarragona, Spain - Author
Universitat Rovira i Virgili - Author
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Abstract

© 2020 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd In this paper, we provide a detailed description of the application of passive sampling with Carbopack X tubes followed by thermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TD-GC-MS) to determine the concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in different school environments. The main objective of the study was to monitor VOCs in seven indoor and three outdoor environments at a school in Tarragona, Spain. However, in order to obtain more accurate information, it was necessary to determine the experimental diffusive uptake rates of the target VOCs in indoor settings through parallel passive and active sampling in one classroom. The results showed experimental diffusive uptake rates in the range of 0.38 mL min-1 and 0.95 mL min-1 with RSD % below 5% for up to 44 VOCs. The monitoring results showed that ethanol (23.84-83.16 µg m-3) and isopropyl alcohol (5.42-25.92 µg m-3) were the most common compounds found in indoor environments, with cleaning products as the main emission source. The VOCs i-pentane and n-pentane were found at the highest concentrations in the three sampling sites set in the school's playground, and their concentrations were strictly related to combustion processes from automobile traffic.

Keywords

air qualityindoor airoutdoor airpassive samplingthermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometryAdsorptionAir pollutionAir pollution, indoorAir qualityDiffusionEnvironmental monitoringExposureGas chromatography-mass spectrometryHealth-riskIndoor airIndustrialOutdoor airPassive samplingPentanePentanesRisk-assessmentSchoolsSpainThermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometryToxicsVehiclesVocsVolatile organic compoundsVolatile organic-compounds

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Indoor Air due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2020, it was in position 24/203, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Public, Environmental & Occupational Health.

Independientemente del impacto esperado determinado por el canal de difusión, es importante destacar el impacto real observado de la propia aportación.

Según las diferentes agencias de indexación, el número de citas acumuladas por esta publicación hasta la fecha 2025-06-29:

  • WoS: 5
  • Scopus: 9
  • Europe PMC: 1

Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2025-06-29:

  • The use, from an academic perspective evidenced by the Altmetric agency indicator referring to aggregations made by the personal bibliographic manager Mendeley, gives us a total of: 40.
  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 40 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

  • The Total Score from Altmetric: 0.75.
  • The number of mentions on the social network X (formerly Twitter): 2 (Altmetric).

It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

  • The work has been submitted to a journal whose editorial policy allows open Open Access publication.

Leadership analysis of institutional authors

There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (Vallecillos L) and Last Author (Borrull Ballarín, Francesc).