Associations of Human Cognitive Abilities with Elevated Carbon Dioxide Concentrations in an Enclosed Chamber

Fifteen participants were exposed in an enclosed environmental chamber to investigate the effects of elevated carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) concentration on their cognitive abilities. Three CO<sub>2</sub> conditions (1500, 3500, and 5000 ppm) were achieved by constant air s...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Xiaodong Cao, Pei Li, Jie Zhang, Liping Pang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-05-01
Series:Atmosphere
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/13/6/891
Description
Summary:Fifteen participants were exposed in an enclosed environmental chamber to investigate the effects of elevated carbon dioxide (CO<sub>2</sub>) concentration on their cognitive abilities. Three CO<sub>2</sub> conditions (1500, 3500, and 5000 ppm) were achieved by constant air supply and additional ultrapure CO<sub>2</sub>. All participants received the same exposure under each condition, during which they performed six cognitive tests evaluating human perception, attention, short-term working memory, risky decision-making, and executive ability. Generalized additive mixed effects model (GAMM) results showed no statistically significant differences in performance on the reaction time (RT) tests, the speed perception test, and the 2-back test. This suggests that elevated CO<sub>2</sub> concentrations below 5000 ppm did not affect participants’ perception and short-term working memory. However, a significant increase in response time was observed in the visual search (VS) test, the balloon simulation risk test (BART), and the Stroop test at 5000 ppm compared to lower exposure concentrations. The slower responses reflected the detrimental effects of elevated CO<sub>2</sub> concentrations on visual attention, risky decision-making, and executive ability. The findings suggest that the control level of CO<sub>2</sub> concentrations should be tighter in enclosed workplaces where rapid response and operational safety are required.
ISSN:2073-4433