In 1990 the California legislature mandated that the California Indoor Air Qualtty Program develop nonbinding guidelines for the reduction of exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOC) from newly constructed or remodeled office buildings. This legislation was the result of concern about increasing complaints of sick building syndrome (SBS). The resulting guidelines cover all aspects of the design, construction, and operation of new or renovated buildings.
Very little experimental data exist validating the influence of temperature, ventilation rate, air velocity, humidity and adsorbed pollutants from other sources on emission rates from construction products. Experiments were performed using small scale climate chambers including the new CLIMPAQ quantifying emissions from test specimens of linoleum, acrylic paint, nylon carpet, and sealant. A trained sensory panel voted on the decipol scale and chemical analysis identified and quantified the major pollutants after the specimens had been conditioned in the chambers for six days.
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