Abstract:
Indoor air quality (IAQ) is one of the human health threat problems in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. In these countries, like the Kingdom of Bahrain, due to unfavorable meteorological conditions, such as high ambient temperature and humidity, and natural events such as dust storms, most people stay indoors for a long time. The burning of incense in homes is widespread among Bahrainis, and this habit causes releasing pollutants such as particulate matter (PM) and carbon monoxide (CO) in their indoor environment. Exposure to such kind of contaminants may lead to harmful health effects

The research's primary goal is to determine the level of particulate matter and carbon monoxide emissions resulting from incense burning. A typical room size found in most Bahraini homes is selected in the experiments, and CO and PM real-time loggers were used to measure the emissions levels. Several tests were carried out with different incense brands and types, with
coal burner and electric burner, to estimate the emission levels accurately. Several tests were conducted for each case to verify the repeatability of the results.

Emission levels for CO (mass and number), PM2.5 (mass and number), and PM10 (mass and number) were taken at 1 min intervals. The results reveal that CO emissions are generally lower than World Health Organization permissible exposure limit and pose a low health risk. But with PM, in all experiments, the mass concentration levels exceeded the permissible exposure limit. It is expected that this research may help in assessing exposures and potential health risks associated with the burning of incense.