drivers reported higher mental effort at 1800 ppm CO₂ than at 800 ppm
Exact: higher reported effort at 1800 ppm vs 800 ppm CO2
Moderate CO2 elevation (1800 ppm) increases perceived effort in drivers compared to lower CO2 (800 ppm)
In this in-car driving experiment, task load was largely unaffected by CO2 or body odor conditions. However, a notable exception was that participants reported a significantly higher effort level when CO2 was at 1800 ppm compared to 800 ppm, indicating that moderately elevated cabin CO2 can increase the perceived cognitive burden of driving tasks.
Task load was also not significantly impacted by CO2 or body odor levels, except for a higher reported effort at 1800 ppm compared to 800 ppm CO2.
Related findings
2260 ppm
poor ventilation pushed CO₂ to more than four times the high-ventilation level
Low ventilation caused CO2 to rise to 2260 ppm
H. Maula et al., 2017, Indoor Air
540 ppm
high ventilation kept indoor CO₂ near outdoor-equivalent levels
High ventilation maintained CO2 at 540 ppm
H. Maula et al., 2017, Indoor Air
bioeffluents at high CO2 reduced cognitive performance on a cue-utilization test
Bioeffluent exposure at 3000 ppm CO2 reduced performance on a cue-utilization cognitive test
X. Zhang et al., 2017, Indoor Air
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