Airborne microorganism contamination was investigated in naturally and mechanically ventilated buildings. Air was sampled with SAS system and cultured on general media for total count and on media for fungi; data were related to other indoor contaminants and to microclimatic parameters. Comparison of winter versus summer microorganism concentrations was not significant. No major difference of detected species was observed between naturally and mechanically ventilated buildings.
The first part of this paper describes a detailed study of the flow of aerosol particles through large openings and the second part describes deposition characteristics of aerosol particles in a single-zone chamber lined with different types of materials, e.g. aluminium foil and carpet. Tracer-gas and aerosol particles were injected into a naturally ventilated room and their concentrations with time were monitored. The room was fitted with a number of windows which allowed examination of single-sided ventilation.
The growing diffision of small power, gas-fired individual units for space heating and service hot water production, as well as concern about operational safety issues, has promoted greater attention to the understanding of ventilation mechanisms in the dwellings equipped with such units. Within a joint research project between Politecnico di Torino and Italgas, an experimental campaign has been conducted in order to investigate the influence of purpose-provided ventilation openings (sized according to the national UNI-CIG 7129-72 standard) on air changes and IAQ.
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