IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v14y2022i2p739-d721606.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Assessment of Indoor Air Quality in Residential Buildings of New England through Actual Data

Author

Listed:
  • Fernando del Ama Gonzalo

    (Department of Sustainable Product Design and Architecture, Keene State College, University System of New Hampshire, Keene, NH 03435, USA)

  • Matthew Griffin

    (Department of Sustainable Product Design and Architecture, Keene State College, University System of New Hampshire, Keene, NH 03435, USA)

  • Jacob Laskosky

    (Department of Sustainable Product Design and Architecture, Keene State College, University System of New Hampshire, Keene, NH 03435, USA)

  • Peter Yost

    (Building-Wright, Brattleboro, VT 05301, USA)

  • Roberto Alonso González-Lezcano

    (Escuela Politécnica Superior, Montepríncipe Campus, Universidad San Pablo-CEU, CEU Universities, 28668 Madrid, Spain)

Abstract

Several studies on indoor air quality (IAQ) and sick building syndromes have been completed over the last decade, especially in cold countries. Efforts to make homes airtight to improve energy efficiency have created buildings with low ventilation rates, resulting in the build-up of indoor pollutants to harmful levels that would be otherwise unacceptable outdoors. This paper analyzed the infiltration rates, indoor temperatures, and variations in CO 2 , 2.5 μm particulate matter (PM 2.5 ), and total volatile organic compound (TVOC) concentrations over the fall of 2021 in several homes in New England, USA. A relationship between outdoor and indoor conditions and ventilation strategies has been set using the results from blower door tests and actual indoor air quality data. Although all case studies lacked mechanical ventilation devices, such as those required by ASHRAE Standard 62.2, natural ventilation and air leakage have been enough to keep VOCs and PM 2.5 concentration levels at acceptable values most of the studied time. However, results revealed that 25% of a specific timeframe, the occupants have been exposed to concentration levels of CO 2 above 1000 parts per million (ppm), which are considered potentially hazardous conditions.

Suggested Citation

  • Fernando del Ama Gonzalo & Matthew Griffin & Jacob Laskosky & Peter Yost & Roberto Alonso González-Lezcano, 2022. "Assessment of Indoor Air Quality in Residential Buildings of New England through Actual Data," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-16, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:2:p:739-:d:721606
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/2/739/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/2/739/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jesica Fernández-Agüera & Samuel Dominguez-Amarillo & Marco Fornaciari & Fabio Orlandi, 2019. "TVOCs and PM 2.5 in Naturally Ventilated Homes: Three Case Studies in a Mild Climate," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(22), pages 1-22, November.
    2. Darja Kubečková & Michal Kraus & Ingrid Juhásová Šenitková & Magdaléna Vrbová, 2020. "The Indoor Microclimate of Prefabricated Buildings for Housing: Interaction of Environmental and Construction Measures," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-23, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Darja Kubečková & Magdaléna Vrbová, 2021. "Historical Development of Thermal Protection of Prefab Residential Housing and Its Future, an Example of the Czech Republic," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-21, May.
    2. Qianqian Zhao & Junzhen Li & Roman Fediuk & Sergey Klyuev & Darya Nemova, 2021. "Benefit Evaluation Model of Prefabricated Buildings in Seasonally Frozen Regions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-18, November.
    3. Magdalena Baborska – Narożny & Maria Kostka, 2022. "Seasonal Air Quality in Bedrooms with Natural, Mechanical or Hybrid Ventilation Systems and Varied Window Opening Behavior-Field Measurement Results," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(24), pages 1-17, December.
    4. Truong Dang Hoang Nhat Nguyen & Hyosoo Moon & Yonghan Ahn, 2022. "Critical Review of Trends in Modular Integrated Construction Research with a Focus on Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-23, September.
    5. Samuel Domínguez-Amarillo & Jesica Fernández-Agüera & Sonia Cesteros-García & Roberto Alonso González-Lezcano, 2020. "Bad Air Can Also Kill: Residential Indoor Air Quality and Pollutant Exposure Risk during the COVID-19 Crisis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-33, September.
    6. Darja Kubečková, 2022. "The Quality of ETICS in the Context of Energy and Social Changes (Case Study)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-13, March.
    7. Hermawan Hermawan & Jozef Švajlenka, 2022. "Building Envelope and the Outdoor Microclimate Variable of Vernacular Houses: Analysis on the Environmental Elements in Tropical Coastal and Mountain Areas of Indonesia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-18, February.
    8. Rui Zhu & Yang Lv & Zhimeng Wang & Xi Chen, 2021. "Prediction of the Hypertension Risk of the Elderly in Built Environments Based on the LSTM Deep Learning and Bayesian Fitting Method," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-19, May.
    9. Maria Chiara Pietrogrande & Lucia Casari & Giorgia Demaria & Mara Russo, 2021. "Indoor Air Quality in Domestic Environments during Periods Close to Italian COVID-19 Lockdown," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-12, April.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:2:p:739-:d:721606. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.