Impact of Reduced Ventilation on Indoor Air Quality in Residential Buildings

Conference · Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 1980

OSTI ID:5505445

Berk, James V. ^[1]; Hollowell, Craig D. ^[1]; Pepper, James H. ^[1]; Young, Rodger A. ^[1]

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1. University of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (LBL)

Rising energy prices have generated a national incentive to reduce ventilation rates in buildings and thereby lower heating and cooling costs. One of the ramifications of reducing ventilation is that indoor air contaminants build up and pose a health risk to occupants. A research program being conducted to determine the extent to which low ventilation rates are compatible with good indoor air quality is described. Overall indoor air quality is influenced by air-exchange rates, types of appliances and building materials used, and occupant activities. From the numerous indoor air pollutants studied, four (carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide from gas appliances; formaldehyde from particle-board, plywood, urea formaldehyde foam insulation, and gas appliances; and radon from soil, building materials, and ground water) are receiving considerable attention in the context of potential health risks associated with energy conservation. Field monitoring studies in energy-efficient residential buildings have demonstrated that, in some cases, these indoor-generated pollutants exceed outdoor air-quality standards in houses having air-exchange rates of less than 0.5 air changes per hour. The results of our research suggest that further studies, designed to include a broader range of infiltration rates ad occupancy conditions, are needed before establishing energy-efficient infiltration standards for residential buildings.

• Research Organization: University of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (LBL)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Solar Energy Technologies Office
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-48
• OSTI ID: 5505445
• Report Number(s): LBL--10527; EEB-Vent--80-5; CONF-800608--2
• Resource Type: Conference paper
• Conference Information: Air Pollution Control Association annual meeting, Montreal, QC (Canada), 22-27 Jun 1980
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
320101* -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Residential Buildings-- (-1987)
AIR POLLUTION
AIR QUALITY
ALDEHYDES
BUILDING MATERIALS
BUILDINGS
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBON MONOXIDE
CARBON OXIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
COLLOIDS
DATA
DATA FORMS
DISPERSIONS
ELEMENTS
ENERGY CONSERVATION
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
EVALUATED DATA
FILTRATION
FOAMS
FORMALDEHYDE
GRAPHS
GROUND WATER
HAZARDS
HEALTH HAZARDS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INDOOR AIR POLLUTION
INFORMATION
MATERIALS
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
NITROGEN DIOXIDE
NITROGEN OXIDES
NONMETALS
NUMERICAL DATA
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTION
RADON
RARE GASES
RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS
SEPARATION PROCESSES
UREA-FORMALDEHYDE FOAMS
VENTILATION
WATER
air pollution
carbon monoxide
energy conservation
formaldehyde
indoor air quality
infiltration
nitrogen dioxide
radon
ventilation