Indoor air quality in Nearly Zero Energy Buildings, reduction of exposure

Various studies show a deterioration in indoor air quality after renovation and energy saving measures. NZEB dwellings are at the moment at an airtightness level, that the old slogan make buildings airtight and ventilate right is an very import solution for a good IAQ, but not without source control. 

Better implementation of ventilative cooling (cooling of buildings using outside air as main source) in national building standards, legislation and compliance tools

Low energy buildings are highly insulated and airtight and therefore subject to overheating risks, where Ventilative cooling (VC) might be a relevant solution. VC is an application (distribution in time and space) of air flow rates to reduce cooling loads in spaces using outside air driven by natural, mechanical or hybrid ventilation strategies. Ventilative cooling reduces overheating in both existing and new buildings - being both a sustainable and energy efficient solution to improve indoor thermal comfort (State-of-the-art-review, Kolokotroni et al., 2015).

Ventilative Cooling – Time for large scale implementation?

The current development in building energy efficiency towards nearly-zero energy buildings (nZEB) represents a number of new challenges to design and construction. One of the major new challenges is the increased need for cooling arising in these highly insulated and airtight buildings. The cooling demand depends less on the outdoor temperature, and more on solar radiation and internal heat gains. This naturally gives better potential for the use of ventilative cooling technologies, because the cooling need is not only in summer, but actually all year round. 

AIVC project: "40 Years of AIVC"

This project deals with reviewing EBC's Annex 5: "Air Infiltration and Ventilation Centre" activities & contributions on the occasion of the project's 40th year of operation. 

The objective of this project is to disseminate information on the activities & key work delivered in the framework of the AIVC over the last 40 years.

Approach:

Smart Ventilation for Buildings (Book of Proceedings)

The Proceedings of the 39th AIVC Conference "Smart Ventilation for Buildings", held in Antibes Juan-Les-Pins, France, on 18-19 September 2018.

Smart Ventilation for Buildings (Slides)

The Presentations at the 39th AIVC Conference "Smart Ventilation for Buildings", held in Antibes Juan-Les-Pins, France, on 18-19 September 2018.

Ventilation Planning for Mid-sized Japanese Commercial Kitchens and Calculation Method of Ventilation Rate Using Building Information Modeling

In the design of a commercial kitchen ventilation system, it is very important to maintain the capture efficiency of exhaust hoods and ensure smooth removal of heat, moisture, and odor. The capture efficiency is affected by the kitchen ventilation system and the cooking appliance usage condition. To identify an appropriate ventilation system design method for commercial kitchens in Japan, surveys were conducted as follows. 

BIM-integrated Design tool for in-line recommended ventilation rates with Demand Controlled Ventilation strategy

Use of Demand Controlled ventilation (DCV) can potentially save more than 50% of energy use for ventilation purposes compared to constant air volume (CAV) ventilation. Correct and updated calculation of preset minimum (Vmin) and maximum (Vmax) airflow rates are important to maximize energy saving and to ensure good indoor quality. Furthermore, earlier studies have shown that controlling units' ability to actually handle V min is lacking and causes instability in the DCV systems 

Overview of what the EU is doing in relation to BIM

The European Commission’s Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME)  manages parts of the Horizon 2020 framework programme for research, innovation and market uptake (2014-2020), including for energy efficiency in the buildings sector. The Agency supports projects under this programme and ensures that their results are fed to policymaking teams within the European Commission.  

Estimated distributions of PM2.5 concentrations in the kitchens of the English housing stock for infiltration and mechanical ventilation scenarios

Exposures to elevated concentrations of airborne fine particulate matter with diameter ≤ 2.5 µm (PM2.5) have been linked to multiple negative health effects. Investigations into PM2.5 exposures primarily focus on external concentrations, which are easier to monitor. However, there is a growing interest in indoor exposures, as people spend up to 70% of their time at home, concentrations in dwellings may have a greater influence on personal exposures.

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