Tested CO emissions of three different cars in a garage in order to see if the concentration of gases would become dangerous. Data was obtained by using two BWGasAlertMicroclip gas detectors. One detector was placed at the front of the vehicle, and the other was placed behind the exhaust pipe of the car. Testing and data compilation by Riley Sutton and Ridge Reid.

1. Vehicle Pollutants:
A Study of Carbon Monoxide Emissions of
Vehicles in a Confined Space
By Ridge Reid and Riley Sutton

2. What is Carbon Monoxide?
• Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless,
odorless, and tasteless gas which is
toxic to humans
• It is common in the industrial
setting, and is created by the
combustion of materials which
contain carbon.
• Examples of these materials are
gasoline, kerosene, propane, wood,
or coal.

3. How does Carbon Monoxide affect the human Body?

4. Prevention of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
• Poisoning can be prevented if proper
precautions are taken.
• Ventilation. Use appropriate
facemask in areas of poor
ventilation.
• Good housekeeping and
maintenance.
• Don’t use gas powered equipment
in a confined space.When
working in a confined space, try to
use equipment powered by
electricity, batteries, or
compressed air.

5. Carbon Monoxide Exposures According to CDC
• Carbon monoxide is the leading
unintentional poisoning deaths in
the U.S
• 2000-2009 Statistics
• NPDS – National Poison Data System
• Most exposures in Midwest and North
East
cdc.gov

6. Standards Concerning Carbon Monoxide
• According to the NIOSH Pocket
Guide:
• The OSHA PEL is 50 ppm.
• The IDLH of CO is set at 1200
ppm.

7. Objective of the Project
• The purpose of this project was to
determine if carbon monoxide
levels produced by a car would
reach dangerous levels inside a
garage.
• We hypothesized CO levels would
reach a dangerous concentration
after a certain amount of time.

8. The Setup

9. The Cars
1992 Pontiac Bonneville
Mileage: 126,911
Engine: 3.8 L V6
Catalytic Converter: Yes
2009 Scion xB
Mileage: 49,500
Engine: 2.4L 4-Cylinder
Catalytic Converter: Yes
2012 Toyota Camry SE
Mileage: 22,000
Engine: 2.5L 4-Cylinder
Catalytic Converter: Yes

10. The Garage

11. CO Analysis on Scion xBTest 1 CO Analysis on Scion xBTest
PPM PPM
Time Back Front Time Back Front
5 OL 0 5 786 0
10 OL 0 10 OL 0
15 OL 0 15 OL 0
20 OL 0 20 OL 0
25 OL 0 25 OL 0
30 OL 0 30 OL 0
1:00 114 6 1:00 300 0
1:30 77 7 1:30 250 0
2:00 49 9 2:00 239 0
2:30 33 10 2:30 220 0
3:00 29 10 3:00 200 0
3:30 31 8 3:30 155 8
4:00 21 13 4:00 130 12
4:30 25 16 4:30 110 16
5:00 28 19 5:00 100 21
5:30 24 18 5:30 85 20
6:00 27 20 6:00 60 20
6:30 28 19 6:30 40 18
7:00 30 20 7:00 35 16
7:30 35 21 7:30 30 16
8:00 30 21 8:00 30 15
8:30 25 21 8:30 30 15
9:00 25 21 9:00 28 16
9:30 22 20 9:30 27 15
10:00 21 20 10:00 25 15
10:30 23 21 10:30 23 15
11:00 23 21 11:00 23 15
11:30 28 21 11:30 26 15
12:00 29 21 12:00 23 15
12:30 33 20 12:30 25 16
13:00 34 21 13:00 28 15
13:30 35 21 13:30 27 15

12. CO Analysis on BonnevilleTest 1 CO Analysis on BonnevilleTest 2
CO (PPM) CO (PPM)
Time Back Front Time Back Front
5 70 0 5 74 0
10 80 0 10 80 0
15 95 0 15 100 0
20 104 0 20 109 0
25 127 0 25 115 0
30 145 0 30 129 0
1:00 176 0 1:00 173 0
1:30 126 0 1:30 210 0
2:00 92 0 2:00 120 0
2:30 65 0 2:30 71 0
3:00 40 0 3:00 41 0
3:30 24 0 3:30 30 0
4:00 21 4 4:00 21 0
4:30 19 6 4:30 17 0
5:00 15 5 5:00 15 5
5:30 14 6 5:30 13 5
6:00 13 6 6:00 12 5
6:30 11 6 6:30 11 5
7:00 11 6 7:00 10 5
7:30 11 8 7:30 10 5
8:00 11 8 8:00 10 5
8:30 11 8 8:30 10 5
9:00 11 8 9:00 10 5
9:30 11 8 9:30 10 5
10:00 11 8 10:00 10 6
10:30 11 8 10:30 10 6
11:00 11 9 11:00 10 6
11:30 11 8 11:30 10 6
12:00 11 8 12:00 10 6
12:30 11 8 12:30 10 6
13:00 11 8 13:00 10 6
13:30 10 8 13:30 10 6
14:00 10 9 14:00 10 6
14:30 10 8 14:30 10 6

13. CO Analysis on Camry SETest 1 CO Analysis on Camry SETest 2
CO (PPM) CO (PPM)
Time Back Front Time Back Front
5 169 0 5 216 0
10 33 0 10 89 0
15 20 0 15 58 0
20 12 0 20 39 0
25 5 0 25 30 0
30 5 0 30 24 0
1:00 5 0 1:00 10 0
1:30 5 0 1:30 5 0
2:00 5 0 2:00 5 0
2:30 5 0 2:30 8 0
3:00 5 0 3:00 9 0
3:30 8 0 3:30 10 0
4:00 8 0 4:00 10 0
4:30 8 0 4:30 5 0
5:00 5 0 5:00 10 0
5:30 8 0 5:30 8 0
6:00 8 0 6:00 6 0
6:30 8 0 6:30 6 0
7:00 8 0 7:00 6 0
7:30 8 0 7:30 6 0
8:00 8 0 8:00 5 0
8:30 8 0 8:30 6 0
9:00 8 0 9:00 6 0
9:30 8 0 9:30 6 0
10:00 8 0 10:00 6 0
10:30 8 0 10:30 5 0
11:00 7 0 11:00 5 0
11:30 8 0 11:30 6 0
12:00 8 0 12:00 6 0
12:30 7 0 12:30 6 0
13:00 8 0 13:00 6 0
13:30 8 0 13:30 6 0
14:00 8 0 14:00 6 0

14. Testing Budget
• The budget for testing was inexpensive.
• No data was required to be sent off for testing.
• The BW GasAlert Microclips were provided by
Oklahoma State University free of charge.
• Normally the Microclips would run around
$360 a piece.
• No personal protective equipment was
required.

15. Recommendations
• There were no hazards found during
our testing.
• The CO levels were below the OSHA
PEL of 50 ppm, and therefore no
action is required.
• Still, it may be wise for individuals to
avoid the rear of the car when it is
started.
• CO levels were recorded at over
1000 ppm momentarily after
startup.

16. Works Cited
• Häggström, Mikael. "File:Main Symptoms of Carbon DioxideToxicity.svg."
Wikimedia Commons. N.p., n.d.Web. 28 Feb. 2009.
• "OSHAViolations -Top in 2013 & Other OSHA Facts." OSHAViolations -Top
in 2013 & Other OSHA Facts. N.p., n.d.Web. 19 Apr. 2014.
<http://www.safetytrainingservices.net/sts-blog/bid/326402/OSHA-
Violations-Top-in-2013-Other-OSHA-Facts>.