Odor-annoyance estimates from road-traffic combustion exhausts : Calibration with master scaling using pyridine as a reference

The master-scaling procedure, which is described, was applied to odor-annoyance estimates from road-traffic combustion exhausts. Pyridine was chosen as the reference stimulus since it exhibits both olfactory and trigeminal properties. The master-scale calibrated magnitude estimates of odor annoyance for a heavily trafficked road were compared to those for a less-polluted backyard. At total of 25 subjects were used, who took place in each of two field trials. Results indicated that the master-scaled annoyance estimates differed markedly between the road and the backyard after calibration from a blank stimuli in an apartment.