humidity

A series of experiments was carried out to study the effect of temperature and humidity on the perception of indoor air quality. The study included both laboratory and controlled field experiments using an untrained sensory panel to judge the air quality at different levels of temperature and humidity. Facial and whole-body exposure for a short term (up to 20 minutes) was used in the laboratory study, and long-term whole-body exposure (up to 4. 6 hours) was used in the field study. The study found a significant impact of temperature and humidity on the perception of indoor air quality.

A study by the Australian Institute of Tropical Architecture was undertaken using the energy rating software BERS to determine the influence of using low absorptance paint on the thermal performance of uninsulated houses in the warm humid tropics of Australia. It was found that using such paints reduced the cooling energy load in airconditioned houses and the number of degree hours naturally ventilated houses were outside a preset comfort zone.

Positive input ventilation systems for dealing with dampness in dwellings have been available for many years, but do they really reduce condensation? A DETR-funded research project has provided some answers

The literature for the control of dust mites by modification of the psychrometric conditions of the environment is reviewed from the standpoint of a building scientist or engineer, both to present to building science workers an envelope of microenvironment psychrometric conditions to use as control, and to highlight those areas of dust mite biology that require further research to complete the knowledge of the psychrometric envelope for dust mite viability.