Common houseplants can boost oxygen levels air by absorbing carbon dioxide and exhaling oxygen. Numerous typical houseplants are also capable of removing residues of dangerous substances from the air. The capacity of your indoor plants to create oxygen and purify the air is influenced by a variety of factors, such as their species, size, health, and the amount of light they get.

Our plants’ ability to release oxygen into the atmosphere is greatly influenced by their immediate surroundings. As part of their natural respiration process, plants take in oxygen, carbon dioxide, and other atmospheric gases through their leaves. Under the correct circumstances, healthy plants create more oxygen than they use and absorb dangerous traces of contaminants from the air. Light is one of the key environmental variables preventing indoor plants from producing enough oxygen. Plants start absorbing oxygen and exhaling carbon dioxide when they don’t get enough light to enable photosynthesis. Unless they are positioned beneath a powerful light source or a south-facing window, plants that have evolved to flourish in direct sunlight will give little oxygen to indoor growth settings.

It is far more challenging to estimate how much oxygen a plant will generate since there are so many different factors at play. As a consequence of generating sugar, which serves as their energy supply, plants also create oxygen. In order to generate the same amount of sugar and oxygen, slower-growing plants require far less sugar than faster-growing plants do.

Less oxygen is produced when there is less photosynthesis due to low light levels. Photosynthesis and subsequent oxygen levels are influenced by temperature, water content, and the availability of nutrients. When a plant engages in photosynthesis, it absorbs carbon from the atmosphere and adds it to its body, which includes its leaves, stems, and roots. Each molecule of CO2 that is taken causes the plant to gain an atom of carbon and release an O2 molecule. Therefore, by weighing the plant, we can determine a rough estimate of the amount of oxygen generated.

How much oxygen and dangerous chemicals your plant generates and eliminates from the air depends on its health, size, and compatibility with your indoor growing environment. When placed in front of a window with a southern exposure, plants that are acclimated to direct sunlight will create the most oxygen. How many plants you have also affects how much oxygen is present in your home. Growing one houseplant large enough to fill a 6- to 8-inch pot for every 100-to 120-square-foot area of floor space can significantly enhance indoor air quality.

According to the NASA Fact Sheet, there are 20.95% O2 and 0.04% CO2 in the air. The oxygen levels in a space would rise from 20.95% to 21% if there were enough plants present to completely absorb all of the CO2 and turn it into oxygen (ref 3). This rise would not affect people and is difficult to notice. Remember that this increase is the greatest that may be achieved and that it is based on the assumption that plants would utilize all of the available CO2. The rise is significantly less in real life.

Numerous popular houseplants can enhance the quality of the air inside your home, according to an article from the University of Minnesota Extension program. Common indoor plants that help purify the air include the English ivy (Hedera helix), snake plant (Sansevieria trifasciata), spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum), and spade leaf philodendron (Philodendron domesticum). English ivy thrives in USDA hardiness zones 5 through 9, whereas spider plants grow in zones 8 to 11, according to the USDA. While the spade-leaf philodendron grows in USDA zones 10a through 11, the snake plant is a subtropical species that may be found in zones 9b to 11.