Investigation of indoor environmental quality in Shanghai metro stations, China

A field study was carried out in Shanghai metro stations to gather and evaluate information about the real environment. The thermal environment and particulate matter levels were monitored in this study. The mean thermal sensation vote in metro stations was 0.91, and the mean thermal neutral temperature was 20.6°C. Although 92.1% of subjects voted that the thermal environment was acceptable, the condition of air quality in Shanghai metro stations was not good. The mean levels of PM1.0, PM2.5, and PM10 were 0.231 ± 0.152, 0.287 ± 0.177, and 0.366 ± 0.193 mg/m³, respectively. The contribution of PM1.0 to PM2.5 and PM2.5 to PM10 was up to 79% and 76%, respectively. This means that fine particles or ultrafine particles constituted the preponderant part of metro station particulate matter.