This paper reports the findings of a pilot field study carried out to investigate the internal and external air pollution levels of two adjacent buildings, one naturally-ventilated and the other air-conditioned in an urban area, to investigate their relative attenuation of external pollution levels and to compare internal levels with existing air quality guidelines. Concentration levels of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide were monitored.
The role of ventilation in the housing stock is to provide fresh air and to dilute internally-generated pollutants in order to assure adequate indoor air quality. Energy is required to provide this ventilation service, either directly for moving the air or indirectly for conditioning the outdoor air for thermal comfort. Different kinds of ventilation systems have different energy requirements. Existing dwellings in the United States are ventilated primarily through leaks in the building shell (i.e., infiltration) rather than by mechanical ventilation systems.
Low emitting building materials have contributed to the reduction of indoor air contaminants, and in many countries gas ranges and gas cookers are rarely used. As a result, in buildings located in urban environments, a considerable part of the contaminants in the indoor air may originate from the outdoor air. In urban areas buildings are exposed to high concentrations of a large number of contaminants, especially during traffic peak hours.
The aim of this study was to compare the radon levels at workplaces and in homes located nearby. Homes (number of 57) and partly or fully underground workrooms (number of 55) have been studied at the four workplaces in southern Finland and one workplace in northern Finland. Radon concentrations both at workplaces and in homes seemed to be at the same level in the same district. The mean radon concentration in workrooms was 406 Bq.m³, and in homes concentration was 398 Bq.m³.
The present paper presents results from measurements of outdoor airflow rates and air change rates carried out simultaneously with measurements of the indoor concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) . The measurements were made both under controlled laboratory conditions and in the field. The field experiments were performed in a conference room, an assembly hall and an office room, and the laboratory investigation was carried out in a 19 m³ test chamber.
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