Data from: Mobile phones as monitors of personal exposure to air pollution: is this the future?

Mobile phones have a large spectrum of applications, aiding in risk
prevention and improving health and wellbeing of their owners. So far,
however, they have not been used for direct assessment of personal
exposure to air pollution. In this study, we comprehensively evaluated the
first, and the only available, mobile phone - BROAD Life - equipped with
air pollution sensors (PM2.5 and VOC), to answer the question whether this
technology is a viable option in the quest of reducing the burden of
disease to air pollution. We tested its performance, applicability and
suitability for the purpose by subjecting it to varied concentrations of
different types of aerosol particles (cigarette smoke, petrol exhaust and
concrete dust) and formaldehyde under controlled laboratory conditions, as
well as to ambient particles during field measurements. Six reference
instruments were used in the study: AEROTRAK Optical Particle Counter (OPC
model number 9306), DustTrak, Aerodynamic Particle Counter (APS), Scanning
Mobility Particle Sizer (SMPS), Tapered Element Oscillating Microbalance
(TEOM) and Formaldehyde Analyser. Overall, we found that the phone's
response was linear at higher particle number concentrations in the
chamber, above 5 and 10 µg m-3 , for combustion and concrete dust
particles, respectively, and for higher formaldehyde concentrations,
making it potentially suitable for applications in polluted environments.
At lower ambient concentrations of particles around 10 ug m-3 and 20 µg
m-3 for PM2.5 and PM10, respectively, the phone's response was below
its noise level, suggesting that it is not suitable for ambient monitoring
under relatively clean urban conditions. This mobile phone has a number of
limitations that may hinder its use in personal exposure and for
continuous monitoring. Despite these limitations, it may be used for
comparative assessments, for example when comparing outcomes of
intervention measures or local impacts of air pollution sources. It should
be kept in mind, however, that a mobile phone measuring air quality alone
cannot as such 'reduce the burden of disease to air pollution, as
knowing ambient concentrations is only one of the building block in this
quest. As long as individuals cannot avoid exposure e.g. in urban areas,
knowing concentrations is not sufficient to reduce potential adverse
effects. Yet, there are many situations and microenvironments, which
individuals could avoid knowing the concentrations and also being aware of
the risk caused by exposure to them. This includes for example to
proximity to vehicle emissions, either for social purposes (e.g. street
cafes) or exercising (e.g. walking or jogging along busy roads)or indoor
environments affected by combustion emissions (smoking, candle burning,
open fire).