Good indoor air quality in buildings becomes such a major concern that new design recommendations emerge in many countries (USA, Nordic Countries,...). Improvement of the interior environment should not beat the expense of higher energy consumption. Heat recovery systems are one appropriate answer to this challenge. However, additional energy savings could be achieved by applying demand controlled ventilation when the internal loads vary significantly. A CO2 controlled ventilation system has been installed in a conference room with high variable occupancy in mid 91.

Experiments were carried out in four naturally ventilated offices to measure the indoor environmental parameters such as air velocity, turbulence intensity and air temperature at three vertical levels, Air change rates for various indoor and outdoor climates were detetmined. The concentration of carbon dioxide in the room was monitored. Subjective assessment was made to evaluate the thermal comfort and indoor air quality in the offices. The effect of opening windows and doors on the indoor comfort conditions was also investigated.

During the last decade several surveys in Sweden have indicated that the indoor climate in existing schools is unsatisfactory, therefore a thorough project was carried out in Växjö). The indoor climate was investigated in three schools during 1989. Detailed measurements were made of ventilation (e.g. rates, air exchange efficiency), indoor air quality (e.g. CO2) and thermal comfort (e.g. air velocity). The main results were: high indoor temperatures, low air velocities and high concentration of CO2. Improvements were made in all three schools during 1990.

The study deals with the theoretical and experimental simulation of gas leaks in buildings. Such simulations may provide helpful information about the flow characteristics and dangerous concentrations as a function of the ventilation system (if any), the geometrical features and the thermal constraints on the room, and eventually about the positioning of gas monitoring devices.

The present paper reports on tracer gas measurements performed in five large buildings during normal operating conditions. In all buildings air was supplied through ceiling diffusers and returned through a ceiling plenum. The measurements were taken during summer with the systems in cooling mode, i.e. the supply temperature was lower than the room temperature. The global air change effectiveness and the occupied zone average air change effectiveness were calculated based on the age-of-air concept.

Avery largeelectronics factory had beencompletely refurbished, and new mechanical ventilation systems installed. In an area of the factory where the principal activity was the bench assembly of small components, there were persistent complaints of eye nose and throat irritations, and absenteeism among the workforce was excessive. Careful examination of the environment had failed to identify any significant contaminants in the air. The situationwas similar to the SickBuilding Syndrome in office buildings.

This paper describes a method for measuring tbe dispersal of airborne contaminants by light-sheet illumination of aerosol tracen and digital image processing techniques. The goals of the research were twofold: to use field-portable and safe equipment to make near-instantaneous measurements of tracer aerosol concentrations over arbitrarily positioned two-dimensional planes of near-mom dimensions; and to carefully define similarity conditions under which aerosol dispersal can be considered an accurate surrogate for passive molecular dispersal.

This paper deals with the problem of the weather influence on ventilation rate for naturally ventilated buildings with purpose provided openings and vertical shafts. Hitherto, it has not been possible to predict the ventilation rate or to extrapolate it for other weather conditions than the measured ones, without performing a heavy calculation exercise by means of running a computer program. In the paper a prediction as well as an extrapolation procedure is outlined . The procedures are based on generalised output data from a single zone infiltration and ventilation model (AIDA).

Airtightness deficiencies of building envelopes and weaknesses in the ventilation systems can disrupt the operation of heating and ventilation systems. This can lead to an insufficient level of air quality and higher energy consumptions. In order to assess the performances of buildings and ventilation systems, CSTB has designed and developed different experimental devices for field testing. In a first step, an equipment was produced to measure the envelope air leakage. This apparatus is mainly used for research purposes.

The classification of outdoor (ambient) air as fresh for the purposes of ventilation is not always appropriate, particularly in urban areas. In many cities of the world, urban air frequently violates health-based air quality standards due to high ozone concentrations. The degree of protection from exposure to ozone offered by the indoor environment depends on the relationship between indoor and outdoor ozone levels. Existing concentration data indicates that indoor/outdoor ozone ratios range between 10 and 80%.