ECA 29: Harmonisation framework for health based evaluation of indoor emissions from construction products in the European Union using the EU-LCI concept

This report describes a harmonised procedure for establishing a list of compounds and their associated LCI (Lowest Concentration of Interest) values for the evaluation of emissions from construction products (EU-LCI) taking into account existing procedures used in some Member States (i.e. ANSES in France and AgBB in Germany). It provides an appropriate health‐protective, science-based and transparent yet pragmatic approach with a flexible framework that enables review of the EU-LCI procedure to take into account new knowledge (e.g.

ECA 27: Harmonisation framework for indoor products labelling schemes in the EU

Harmonisation of indoor products labelling schemes in the EU is an important aspect of the European Commission’s policy making process in the field of indoor air quality and associated health effects. This report describes the outcome of recent activities and a roadmap setting out the steps being taken by the ECA preparatory working group 27 led by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre for establishing an EU wide harmonisation framework for labelling schemes which consists of core and transitional criteria for testing and evaluation methodologies.

ECA 26: Impact of Ozone-initiated Terpene Chemistry on Indoor Air Quality and Human Health

Hundreds of compounds have been measured in indoor air includingVOCs (volatile organic compounds), NOX (nitrogen oxides) and ozone (O3). However, to date, the only potential sensory irritants to be identified has been formaldehyde. Until recently, most research has focussed on the compounds that are emitted indoors and relatively little attention has been paid to the significance of the reactions that are likely to occur between them, i.e. mixtures.

ECA 25: Strategies to determine and control the contributions of indoor air pollution to total inhalation exposure (STRATEX)

Human exposure to environmental pollutants occurs via various pathways such as air, drinking water, food, and dermal contact. For many pollutants, especially the volatile ones, air exposure is the dominant pathway. Exposure via air occurs both outdoors and indoors, with diverse types of indoor spaces playing a role, e.g., home, workplace, schools, kindergartens, and passenger cabins of means of transportation.
 

ECA 24: Harmonisation of indoor material emissions labelling systems in the EU

Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) and emissions from building materials have been over the last decades a major challenge for scientists, industry and consumers. In response to the need for improved consumer protection different kinds of labelling systems for material emissions have been developed in many European countries and by industrial organisations. The main purpose is to protect consumers from exposure to chemical pollutants and resulting adverse health effects (i.e., carcinogenic, teratogenic, irritant) or annoyance by bad odours, which could be caused by chemical emissions from materials.

ECA 23: Ventilation, good indoor air quality and rational use of energy

The aim of this report is to provide information and advice to policy and decision makers, researchers, architects, designers, and manufacturers on strategies for achieving a good balance between good indoor air quality (IAQ) and the rational use of energy in buildings, available guidelines and assessment techniques on energy and IAQ, significant trends for the future with implications for IAQ and the use of energy in buildings; and an indication of current research issues.

ECA 22: Risk assessment in relation to indoor air quality

People will never live in a risk free environment. Still we must aim at minimizing all risks and most importantly risks that are imposed on without their consent or even knowledge. A building is built for and perceived as shelter - against weather and unwanted intruders, for thermal comfort, privacy and property. Health threatening risks that the dwellers of a building cannot sense or expect contradict directly the whole concept of a building.

ECA 21: European Interlaboratory Comparison on VOCs emitted from building materials and products

Eighteen laboratories from 10 European countries participated in a comparison organized in the frame of the project VOCEM, a 2.5 year research collaboration among 4 research institutes and 4 industrial companies. The VOCEM project ("Further development and validation test chamber method for measuring VOC emissions from building materials and products") has been partially funded by the European Commission (Contract no. SMT4-VT95-2039). The scope of the project was to improve the procedure used to measure VOC emitted from building materials and products in small test chambers.

ECA 20: Sensory evaluation of indoor air quality

This report presents background to and advice on methodologies for sensory evaluation of indoor air quality (IAQ). The report gives a short introduction to sensory mechanisms and responses and to the theory of measurement underlying sensory evaluations and discusses in detail available sensory evaluation techniques. After a critical methodological analysis of some recently published documents on IAQ, sensory methods best suited for the evaluation of material emissions and of IAQ and for population response studies are recommended.

ECA 19: Total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) in indoor air quality investigations.

The amount of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in indoor air, usually called TVOC (Total volatile organic compounds), has been measured using different definitions and techniques which yield different results. This report recommends a definition of TVOC referring to a specified range of VOCs and it proposes a method for the measurement of this TVOC entity.

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