pollutant

Indoor air quality research in Canada is outlined. 17 indicators are being considered in drawing up air quality criteria and guidelines for residential application. They comprise: carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, radon and radon decay products, formaldehyde, aldehydes, nitrogen dioxide, microbiological agents, moisture, particulates, ozone, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, chlorinated hydrocarbons, lead, pesticides, aerosols, synthetic fibres and asbestos, and oxides of sulphur.

Investigations have been carried out over the last three years in industrial buildings having a variety of manufacturing processes. Data were collected on contaminant source and behaviour, exhaust ventilation, supply air, workroom pressure differentials, air currents in the workroom and discharges from exhaust ventilation systems. From these measurements a workroom air balance was drawn up and the re-entrainment of contamination from discharge into the breathing zone of people in the workroom was studied.

From a hygienic viewpoint, optimum indoor air quality can be characterized as the complete absence of pollutants. The most important sources of such pollutants are reviewed, including those entering a room from outside, those generated by human activity and those emanating from various materials. Thebasic requirement is for all emissions to be as low as possible. For CO2 and formaldehyde the existing standards are reasonable. For most of the other substances it is not recommended to define tolerable limit values since such definition may decrease the efforts to attain a zero level.

This environmental information handbook was prepared to assist both the non-technical reader and technical persons, such as researchers, policy analysts, and builders/designers, understand the current state of knowledge regarding combustion so

Reviews literature on indoor air quality in housing, nature of contaminants and their sources, health effects, standards and guidelines, impact of air sealing on indoor air quality, sources of uncontrolled air leakage, airtightness and natural ventilation, airtightness of new and existing housing stock, air change in new and existing housing, impact of air sealing on airtightness and ventilation, indoor air quality in tight houses, impact of occupant behaviour on ventilation, measures to improve indoor air quality, identifying problem houses, indoor pollution control strategies, and ventila

This paper discusses the measurement of air infiltration rates and reports on measurements relating indoor and outdoor aerosol size distributions in the 0.01 to 1 micron size range. 

A study was conducted in 40 homes in the areas of Oak Ridge and West Knoxville, in the summer and winter months, to quantify concentrations of COx, NOx, particulates, formaldehyde, and radon, as well as selected volatile organic compounds. 

Chemical pollutants and ventilation rate have been measured in newly built energy efficient private dwellings. The samples were taken in the absence of normal human activity in the houses. The data show that the main source of organic pollutants seems to be indoor building materials and furniture. For dust an important source could be the outdoor environment. Formaldehyde was primarily found in houses where chipboard was used while levels of radon daughters was very low in all houses tested.

Indoor pollutant levels in well-insulated houses are being investigated in a 2-year theoretical and experimental study involving the simultaneous measurement of meteorological variables, air exchange and circulation, and energy consumption. This paper describes concentrations of radon, radon progeny, formaldehyde, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides observed in two houses over two seasons, summer and fall 1983. Two companion papers provide a perspective on the problem and the study design, and present results of energy use and infiltration measurements.

An indoor air quality investigation of a 60,000 m2 8 storey government office building was carried out as a part of an in-depth study of the Total Building Performance of the building. The transdisciplinary study included the following areas of building performance: lighting, acoustics, thermal comfort, ventilation, energy use, air circulation, air quality, occupant comfort, building envelope thermography, functional use and enclosure integrity. The air quality conclusions generic to large offices are presented.