A state-of-the-art review on indoor air pollution and strategies for indoor air pollution control.

Worldwide people tend to spend approximately 90% of their time in different indoor environments. Along with the penetration of outside air pollutants, contaminants are produced in indoor environments due to different activities such as heating, cooling, cooking, and emissions from building products and the materials used. As people spend most of their lives in indoor environments, this has a significant influence on human health and productivity. Despite the two decades of indoor air quality (IAQ) research from different perspectives, there is still a lack of comprehensive evaluation of peer-reviewed IAQ studies that specifically covers the relationship between the internal characteristics of different types of building environments with IAQ to help understand the progress and limitations of IAQ research worldwide. Therefore, this review of scientific studies presents a broad spectrum of pollutants identified in both residential and commercial indoor environments, highlighting the trends and gaps in IAQ research. Moreover, analysis of literature data enabled us to assess the different IAQs in buildings located in different countries/regions, thus reflecting the current global scientific understanding of IAQ. This review has the potential to benefit building professionals by establishing indoor air regulations that account for all indoor contaminant sources to create healthy and sustainable building environments.

Indoor Air Quality in Buildings: A Comprehensive Review on the Factors Influencing Air Pollution in Residential and Commercial Structure

Moisture buffering in buildings: A review of experimental and numerical methods

Real-time particulate matters (PM1, PM2.5, PM4, PM7, PM10, and TSP) with AEROCET 531S (USA), gaseous pollutants (NO2 and TVOC) with Aeroquel 500 gas sampler (NZ) were measured from the indoor air of houses at four residential locations in Dhaka, Bangladesh. PM10 samples were collected on quartz filters with a dual channel dust sampler (IPM-FDS 2510, India) for selected trace metal determination from five houses of Dhaka. Respiratory function of the occupants was assessed by using a peak expiratory flow meter (Rossmax PF 120). Mean PM1, PM2.5, and PM10 concentrations were 46.1 ± 13.4, 76.0 ± 16.2, and 203.9 ± 44.8 μg m−3, respectively. Higher enrichment factors of Pb, Zn, and Ni were found for traffic, industrial, and constructional activities. The correlation between indoor and outdoor PM2.5 (R2 = 0.42) and ratios (I/O < 1) suggesting indoor air was effected by outdoor air. The concentration of NO2 (0.076 ± 0.007 ppm) and TVOC (90.0 ± 46.0 ppm) was found above than other studies. The average total hazard ratio (THR) in Dhaka was 9.06 and has the highest exposure to air pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, NO2) in Khilkhet (THR 10.1) residents. A negative association between ultra-fine particles (PM1) and peak flow rate measurements of the residents living in these houses indicates that inhalations of ultra-fine particles has great influence on the reduced lung efficiency.

Particulate matters and gaseous pollutants in indoor environment and Association of ultra-fine particulate matters (PM 1 ) with lung function

The presented research work is aimed at investigation of the influence of indoor environmental conditions on employees in office buildings. Monitoring of carbon dioxide, temperature, relative humidity and pulse, as well as subjective evaluation, was carried out in three office rooms where air conditioning systems ensured the required amount of fresh air. Investigation showed that in two offices (A and B), the amount of fresh air did not comply with EN 15251:2017. The concentration of CO2 in office A was above 1000 ppm for 72% of the total length of stay. Respondents confirmed fatigue and headaches. In offices A and B, where CO2 concentration was around 1000 ppm, people with a weight of up to 70 kg experienced a significant increase in air temperature as well as odor. Persons with weight higher than 75 kg experienced a slight decrease in air quality. In office C, where CO2 concentration was around 800 ppm, respondents reported a slight decrease in air quality. According to pulse monitoring, it can be stated that in an office where there is an insufficient supply of fresh air, the pulse of a person falls or only slightly rises. A decrease in pulses may indicate the attenuation or stunning of people caused by poor air quality.

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Influence of Indoor Climate on Employees in Office Buildings—A Case Study

Nearly 30% of total population and over 2 million students of Delhi spent above 1/3rd of their daily time in different office buildings and educational institutions of Delhi, of which the ambient air quality is reportedly worst in the globe. However, studies on indoor air quality of non-residential buildings are scarce in India. Present study was conducted in two office buildings and one educational building in Delhi during pre-monsoon. CO 2 , PM 2.5 and VOCs were measured inside each building at every 5 min interval between 9:30 AM and 5:30 PM for 5 days every week. The average CO 2 concentration in both office buildings (1513 ppm and 1338 ppm) was recorded much higher than the ASHRAE standard. Ductless air-conditioning system couple with poor air-circulation and active air-filtration could be attributed to significantly higher concentration of PM 2.5 in one of the office buildings (43.8 μg m −3 ). However, there was significant variation in the concentration of different pollutants at different locations in a building. Among different non-residential buildings, significantly lower concentration of all pollutants was recorded in the educational building (CO 2 : 672 ppm; PM 2.5 : 22.8 μg m −3 and VOC: 0.08 ppm). Total hazard ratio analysis ranks one of the office buildings as most hazardous to workers health compared to others.

Damini Singh

Papers

Indoor air quality of non-residential urban buildings in Delhi, India