passive technologies

Naturally ventilated (NV) buildings, when well designed and operated, can provide adequate indoor environmental quality (IEQ) while reducing the building energy demand. However, in dusty outdoor air, this ventilation technique may increase the penetration of outdoor particulate matter (PM) indoors, leading to adverse health effects. Given the increasing frequency of outdoor dust episodes in Mediterranean climates, an important research question is whether NV buildings can provide adequate indoor air quality (IAQ) during increased outdoor air dust episodes.