Benefits of Indoor Houseplant for Toxic Air Removal in Living Module of ILMAH at UND

Clifford Hall, Room 210

Sansevieria trifasciata, commonly called as Snake Plant or Mother-in-law's Tongue is an ideal plant for indoor spaces because of its natural ability to purify the air. An interesting research program has been done by NASA using a few selected plants including the Snake plant for air purification and to curb "Sick Building Syndrome." The results have consistently shown that the plant removes toxins such as Trichloroethylene, formaldehyde, benzene and xylene. The plant purifies air by absorbing toxins through the leaves and produce adequate oxygen during night thereby also promoting the sleep factor in the human body. In this paper, three 6 inches snake plants are kept in the living core module where the crew members live and sleep. A TVOC (Total Volatile Organic Compound) sensor is placed near the plant which is monitored during pre and post mission to collect data of the toxic gases obtained. These data will be crucial to analyze the quantity of toxic substances present in the module and thereby serving as a preliminary study in the quality of sleep experienced by the crew members with the plant present during the mission.