Since low-floor apartments are vertically closer to parking lots and roadways, it is hypothesized that residents in low-floor apartments may be exposed to elevated ambient levels of motor vehicle emissions compared to residents in high-floor apartments. The present study examined this hypothesis by measuring two motor vehicle source-related pollutants(CO and PM10) in ambient air of high-rise apartment buildings within the boundary of industrial complexes according to atmospheric stability. The ambient air concentrations of CO and PM10 were higher for low-floor apartments than for high-floor apartments, regardless of atmospheric stability. The median concentration ratio of the low-floor air to high-floor air ranged from 1.3 to 2.0, depending upon atmospheric stabilities, seasons and compounds. Moreover, the CO and PM10 concentrations were significantly higher in the winter and in the summer, regardless of the floor height. Atmospheric stability also was suggested to be important for the residents' exposure of high-rise apartment buildings to both CO and PM10. The median ratios of surface inversion air to non-surface inversion air ranged from 1.2 to 1.7 and from 1.0 to 1.6 for PM10 and CO, respectively, depending upon seasons. Conclusively, these parameters(apartment floor height, season, and atmospheric stability) should be considered when evaluating the exposure of residents, living in high-rise apartment buildings, to CO and PM10. Meanwhile, the median PM10 outdoor concentrations were close to or higher than the Korean annual standards for PM10, and the maximum PM10 concentrations substantially exceeded the Korean PM10 standard, thus suggesting the need for a management strategy for ambient PM10. Neither the median nor the maximum outdoor CO concentrations, however, were higher than the Korean CO standard.

• Joon Yeob Lee(Department of Environmental Engineering, Kyungpook National University)
• Wan Kuen Jo(Department of Environmental Engineering, Kyungpook National University) Corresponding Author