Absorption of Volatile Organic Compounds by Different Wool Types

This paper summarises the quantitative analysis of the absorption of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), namely gaseous formaldehyde, toluene, limonene and dodecane, by different wool types. VOCs are of increasing concern due to their role as accumulating indoor air contaminants and this paper demonstrates the potential of wool as a sustainable and natural solution to this problem. Building upon previous data, different wool types were tested via two different methods to assess their absorption ability with regard to these VOCs. For formaldehyde analysis, samples were subjected to cycles of exposure to excess formaldehyde gas whilst the weight gain was measured. For the other VOCs, a modified micro-chamber was used to flow the gases through samples, followed by trapping and quantification of the non-absorbed VOCs using Tenax TA tubes. The data presented indicates that wool is able to absorb a range of VOC’s in differing amounts. The data also shows that the amount and type of VOC’s absorbed by wool was dependent on the sheep breed and the processing of the wool.