Research volunteers wanted

Help us measure the actual exposure to air pollutants at your home, identify sources of pollutants and understand better the factors that affect the variation in exposure between subjects!

Target audience: The participant has to be a non-smoker adult working in home-office modality for 3 consecutive days and should be able to read and speak in English and living in Fribourg or Bern. An explanatory session will be given to the participants before the beginning of the study.

Research group: Human-Oriented Built Environment Lab (HOBEL) | EPFL

Topic: The HOBEL research group from EPFL and located in the Smart Living Lab in Fribourg is conducting a study to assess personal exposure to air pollutants in home environments. This study aims to analyse and compare exposure measured by room monitors against measurements from the sensors that the participant will carry.

Experiment: HOBEL wants to measure exposure during 3 consecutive days of the week (Tuesday-Thursday) using air quality stations in multiple areas of your home and one station that will be worn by the participant. Each station will have a set of sensors that will record exposure and collect pollutants samples.

• Before the study: The participant will answer an online survey about personal information, their living conditions, household size, and building and neighbourhood characteristics.
• During the experiment, the participants will have an activity-diary app on their phones where they will record their activities at home. Additionally, the participant will wear a sleep tracker (Fitbit) during the study.

Time and place: The study will last 3 days per participant starting at the beginning of  October 2021 until the end of November 2021. The study will be fully done in your home.

Reward (if applicable):

• 60 CHF
• A brief report about the air quality in your home
• The sense of fulfillment that comes with helping to advance science!

Contact: Viviana Gonzalez, Doctoral assistant - HOBEL – EPFL

Deadline for application: 15 October 2021

Thank you for your time.