Unless requirements are laid out in codes, control of noise in buildings is often an afterthought. The measures taken to control noise, however, are invariably linked to other building subsystems. Mechanical and plumbing subsystems generate noise; the design of walls, ceilings and floors affects sound transmission.
Most of the existing emission models developed from small-scale chamber tests assume complete mixing in the chamber throughout the test period. This paper examined this assumption using a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CPD) model. The model simulated the three-dimensional air velocity profiles and Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) concentration distributions from wood stain in a well-designed mixing chamber of 1.0X0.8X0.5 m3. The model used measured data to determine the time-dependent voc surface concentrations of wood stain.
This report provides the results of a two-phased study conducted for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) to examine the practices and variability amongst practitioners of contaminated sites risk assessment in Canada. Phase I consisted of a survey of practitioners in the private and regulatory sectors. The intent of the private sector survey was to characterize the capabilities and experience of private firms engaged in human health risk assessment across Canada.
Vertical concentration profiles for various size fractions of airborne particulate matter have been measured in a nonsmoking indoor environment used mainly as a meeting point during coffee break (11.00 a.m.) and tea time (4.00 p.m.). This monitoring exercise was carried out using a novel sampling system specifically designed for measuring concentration gradients of airborne particles (but which can be easily modified for gaseous pollutants) over the first three metres from ground. The results show substantial gradients in concentration, with the highest occurring at around 1.3 m height.
Recent research suggests that fine-particulate air pollution increases the incidence of lung disease and premature death. In this paper, single fibre filter theory was used to predict the theoretical particulate collection efficiency of air permeable walls (dynamic insulation). The relationship between particle diameter and filtration efficiency for dynamic insulation, as a function of flow rate, is examined and compared to that for a conventional filter.
Sensory responses to clean air and air polluted by five building materials under different combinations of temperature and humidity in the ranges 18-28°C and 30-70%RH were studied in the laboratory. A specially designed test system was built and a set of experiments was designed to observe separately the impact of temperature and humidity on the perception of air quality/odor intensity, and on the emission of pollutants from the materials. This paper reports on the impact on perception.
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