Journal of Indoor Environmental Quality

ASHRAE Releases free IAQ Guide

Robert Bean — 2009-11-05T16:45:46-07:00

ASHRAE Releases free IAQ Guide

The Indoor Air Quality Guide: Best Practices for Design, Construction and Commissioning is designed for architects, design engineers, contractors, commissioning agents, and all other professionals concerned with IAQ.

Developed in cooperation with the American Institute of Architects, The U.S. Green Building Council, the Builders and Owners Management Association International, the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors of North America, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

This comprehensive publication provides both summary and detailed guidance.

The summary guidance gives you:

Best practices for all aspects of IAQ building design, commissioning and construction, including designing for maintainability
Tools and material for demonstrating the value of IAQ to clients
40 strategies for achieving 8 critical IAQ objectives

Download the Indoor Air Quality Guide Summary Guidance for Free by visiting ASHRAE.org

RBc: For further studies in IAQ visit "Man_sneezing", "Particulate matter"

EPA Releases Guide to Help Scientists Understand Children's Exposure to Pollutants

Robert Bean — 2009-10-28T00:01:27-06:00

EPA Releases Guide to Help Scientists Understand Children's Exposure to Pollutants WASHINGTON -

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today released a user-friendly document to help risk assessors understand how children are exposed to pollution.

The document, titled 'Highlights of the Child-Specific Exposure Factors Handbook,' serves as a quick-reference guide to the more comprehensive 'Child-Specific Exposure Factors Handbook,' published by EPA in 2008. It will serve as an additional resource for those who work on children?s health issues, which the agency has been highlighting during Children's Health Month.

EPA developed the reference guide to provide important information necessary for answering questions about exposure through drinking water, breathing, and eating foods, such as:

*How much exposure to environmental pollutants might children get if they live or play near contaminated sites?
*How much dirt from a child?s hands might s/he inadvertently eat?
*How much of a child?s exposure to various pollutants might come from skin contact?
*Which age groups (childhood life stages) may inhale or ingest the most and thus may be at higher risks?

More information on the documents: http://www.epa.gov/childexpfactors/highlights

RBc: We also suggest reading ASHRAE 1257-RP, Indoor Environmental Effects On The Performance Of School Work By Children

2009 State Energy Efficiency Scorecard

Robert Bean — 2009-10-26T18:06:43-06:00

Washington, D.C.—Today, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) unveiled a new Web resource for state policymakers and energy efficiency advocates.

This site is the initial phase of ACEEE's new State Energy Efficiency Policy Web site, an ongoing project under the umbrella of ACEEE's State Energy Efficiency Policy Activities. The site serves as an easy-to-use online database of energy efficiency policies in the states, searchable by state or by policy. The database covers:

• appliance standards
• building codes
• clean distributed generation policies
• tax incentives
• vehicle policies
• a host of utility-related energy efficiency information

The site currently covers information for most of the leading states. Ultimately the site will cover policies for all states and will be expanded to also cover state climate policies and smart growth initiatives.

“States are increasingly adopting and implementing new energy policies as a result of high energy prices and increasing concern over global climate change,” said ACEEE's Executive Director Steven Nadel. “ACEEE seeks to provide a comprehensive survey of existing state 'best practices' as a resource for policymakers, businesses, concerned citizens, and others in the energy efficiency community.” "This Web site builds on the extensive research regarding energy efficiency policies and programs for which ACEEE has become well known over the past 28 years," said ACEEE's project manager Sarah Black. "The database will serve as a portal to original ACEEE research as well as resources elsewhere on the Web.

The unique resources include information on clean distributed generation policies and several utility policies, including energy efficiency program funding and customer energy efficiency programs." The complete version of the Web site will roll out in conjunction with the release of ACEEE’s State Energy Efficiency Scorecard for 2007/2008 in the beginning of October. ACEEE anticipates updating information on the site on a quarterly basis as new policies emerge.

RBc: You might be surprised with the results of this report especially if you're from a cold climate!

Supportive Living Environments For Those Living With Dementia

Robert Bean — 2009-10-20T19:36:50-06:00

Very little research exists on creating thermal comfort for seniors or those with physical and/or mental disabilities.

“Supportive living environments: A first concept of a dwelling designed for older adults with dementia” by J.V. Hoof and H.S.M. Kort in the August issue of Dementia is an excellent overview of challenges facing both the occupant living with dementia and designer responsible for these spaces.

Excerpt: “People with dementia may have special needs regarding thermal comfort and the design and implementation of heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, since older adults with dementia have a different perception of their thermal environment due to the atrophy of parts of the brain that are responsible for the perception of thermal sensation (van Hoof, 2008; van Hoof et al., 2008a). To provide occupants with a sense of comfort with the thermal environment, temperature differences within the home should not be too large. Floor heating systems are very suitable, since one does not get hurt by wall panels in case of falls.”

Original source: Dementia, published by SAGE Publications

Temperature Wars Redux

Robert Bean — 2009-10-15T10:39:04-06:00

Further to The International Facility Management Association 2009 Report on Temperature Wars, Savings vs Comfort, Forbes follows up with a left hook on thermal comfort at the office...for the full article and more great illustrations see Keep Your Cool by Tara Weiss and Stephen Sweny

Excerpt: "Annie Steinberg typically sits at her desk wearing a ski hat, gloves and a scarf. A space heater, supplied by her company, is operating nearby. Meanwhile, her boss, Bradford Rand, sits in his office at the other end of the floor and frequently opens his window to let the winter air cool off his sweltering office."

RBc: For additional reading see Introduction: Fundamentals of Indoor Environmental Quality, Temperature Wars, The Perfect HVAC Systems is The Human Body, Current State of the Science: Health Effects and Indoor Environmental Quality

Acknowledgement and copyright: Article link attributed to Forbes.com / Text credit: Tara Weiss / Illustration credit: © Stephen Sweny for Forbes.com

Industrial Design meets HVAC – The Perfect Example

Robert Bean — 2009-10-13T09:19:21-06:00

Industrial Design meets HVAC – The Perfect Example

As our readers know we are a big fan (pun intended) of applying industrial design to HVAC - something which is sorely missing in the industry. Well consumer product manufacture Dyson have married in what we’re calling the perfect example of industrial design applied to HVAC equipment - in a new application of Bernoulli’s principle.

Excerpt: "Using an airfoil-shaped ramp (like a cross-section through an airplane wing), airflow is amplified 15 times. This creates a smooth, powerful airflow, with no need for fast-spinning blades."

Check out this new fan…caveat – we’ve not seen the performance data and are not offering an endorsement as yes...but we do l-o-v-e the look and the principles behind it.

Reducing VOC Emissions from the Architectural Coatings Sector

Robert Bean — 2009-10-07T08:19:51-06:00

The Government of Canada Takes Action to Reduce VOC Emissions from the Architectural Coatings Sector

Gatineau, Que. -- September 30, 2009 -- The Minister of the Environment, Jim Prentice, today announced new regulations to reduce emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from the architectural coatings sector through products such as paints, finishes, dyes, and varnishes. VOCs are pollutants that contribute to the formation of ground-level ozone and particulate matter, two key smog components.

“These new regulations targeting VOC emissions from products such as paints, stains and varnishes are one of a series of regulations aimed at reducing harmful VOC emissions from consumer and commercial products,” said Canada's Minister of Health, Leona Aglukkaq. “This new action will help protect the health of Canadians and help keep exposure to these emissions at low levels.” The regulations set maximum VOC concentration limits for 53 categories of coatings and will apply to all products made, imported, sold, or marketed in Canada. They also cover the use of traffic marking coatings.

The requirements, which are similar to requirements in the United States, were established pursuant to consultations with sector stakeholders. Annual VOC emission reductions from architectural coatings are expected to average 28%, which represents a cumulative reduction of approximately 506 000 tons over 25 years. Combined with other VOC initiatives, these measures will help reduce two of the main components of smog – ground-level ozone and particulate matter. This should prove to be beneficial to human health, agriculture, forestry, and ecosystems. In June 2003, the Government of Canada added VOCs to the List of Toxic Substances in Schedule 1 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, (1999) [CEPA (1999)]. This addition gave the government the authority to develop VOC control measures, such as these regulations, under CEPA (1999). This initiative to reduce VOC emissions from architectural coatings follows the recent adoption of the Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) Concentration Limits for Automotive Refinishing Products Regulations.

For more information on these regulations or other initiatives to reduce VOC emissions from consumer and commercial products, please visit www.ec.gc.ca/nopp/voc .

RBc: Be sure to visit our indoor air quality pages in particular this animation on "how your lungs work" illustrates why VOC reductions are so important.

Photo credit: Benjamin Moore Paints

Green Products Compilation

Robert Bean — 2009-10-02T11:06:00-06:00

Green Products Compilation

Created by the Office of the Federal Environmental Executive (OFEE), this is a compilation of the products for which EPA, DOE, and USDA have provided environmental or energy attribute recommendations. For the first time, product and services specifiers and contracting officials can find all of the designated products in an easy to use series of spreadsheets.

Version 3 of OFEE's green products compilation spreadsheets is now available. This version includes new FEMP standards for beverage vending machines and ENERGY STAR standards for televisions. New columns identify products available from the AbilityOne Program and from UNICOR (Federal Prison Industries).

RBc: We thought our readers might find this interesting. Download the spreadsheet here.

Building Rating and Certification Report Released by the National Institute of Building Sciences

Robert Bean — 2009-10-02T09:54:02-06:00

The National Institute of Building Sciences Task Group on Building Rating and Certification has released its report following a year-long effort. The Report on Building Rating and Certification in the U.S. Building Community contains the Task Group's recommendations to address the ongoing development, implementation and evaluation of building rating systems.

In 2008, the Institute's Board of Directors appointed the Task Group to review the current systems in use across the United States that rate and certify building performance and accredit individual expertise. The Task Group sought input from a broad range of participants in the building sector. This report is the result. View the report .

RBc: This report will provide readers with the scope of challenges facing the building industry as it relates to rating systems – well worth the read.

While browsing the NIBS site be sure to explore the Whole Building Design Guide.

What is PassivHaus?

Robert Bean — 2009-10-01T10:35:43-06:00

What is PassivHaus? In Building Science Corporations feature article this month, John Straube looks at the PassivHaus criteria and makes a comparison to low-energy prototype houses build as part of the US Department of Energy's Building America research program.

RBc: I graduated from N.A.I.T.’s Building Construction Engineering Technology program in 1983 which means I was studying the developments from the 70’s Saskatchewan Conservation House, sat in on a 1981 presentation on vanEE’s air to air heat exchanger, studied double wall framing techniques, radiant heating and solar systems, saw the beginnings of the 1980’s R2000 housing program in Canada, and wrote a paper on a then unknown technique of spraying gunite on insulated block walls to form an airtight insulated building envelope.

HRV/ERV’s and Passivhaus are getting so much buzz on the internet and yet as Straube points out, the Passivhaus concept was inspired by the work of SRC and Canada’s National Research Council and it’s 1977 Saskatchewan Conservation House. Yes...everything old is new again and almost 30 years have passed since graduating and outside of us old guys who know the past, the internet is buzzing about these things like they are the new holy grails about to save the world.

I grew up in Saskatchewan and have been to the Saskatchewan Conservation House. The house wasn’t built to save the world it was built because it is freaking cold here in Canada and energy was becoming expensive and igloo construction in Saskatchewan wasn’t a good alternate since it gets freaking hot in Saskatchewan in the summer...On the other hand all those melted igloos could have been converted to hockey rinks in the winter…hmmm.

30 plus years later it still gets cold in Canada and the reason for high performance homes is still the same...most of us building fanatics from the 70's and 80's feel like we're living Bill Murray's life in Groundhog Day

Read Dr. John Straube article on PassivHaus – reality checks are always a good thing.

Radon is a worldwide health risk in homes says World Health Organization

Robert Bean — 2009-09-24T12:48:31-06:00

“On Monday, September 21st the United Nation's World Health Organization (WHO) said that radon is a worldwide health risk in homes. Dr. Maria Neira of WHO said that "Most radon-induced lung cancers occur from low and medium dose exposures in people's homes. Radon is the second most important cause of lung cancer after smoking in many countries." The WHO recommendations are contained in the "Handbook on Indoor Radon: A Public Health Perspective".” Source credit: EPA Press Release

RBc: From the World Health Organization: “The overall goal of this handbook is to provide an up-to-date overview of the major aspects of radon and health. It does not aim to replace existing radiation protection standards, rather it emphasizes issues relevant to the comprehensive planning, implementation and evaluation of national radon programmes. This handbook, published in September 2009, can be downloaded as a pdf file free of charge.”

See also: ASTM Standard Practice for Radon Control Options for the Design and Construction of New Low-Rise Residential Buildings and Environmental Health Perspectives articles on other indoor air quality challenges

Research on the Origins of Thermal Comfort

Robert Bean — 2009-09-17T12:42:12-06:00

Excerpt: “Given the varied activities of international involvement in indoors environments it was necessary [sic] a deep research report about thermal comfort investigations based on results of scientific research and actual ISO and ASHRAE Standards. Once this research report was done it was concluded the need to develop and test general and local thermal comfort models that let implement[sic] HVAC systems to reach the better comfort conditions [22] and, at the same time, other objectives like energy saving [23], materials conservancy or work risk prevention in industrial ambiences.”

Source credit: Research on the Origins of Thermal Comfort, Orosa, J.A., European Journal of Scientific Research, Vol.34, No.4 (2009), pp.561-567

RBc: Research on the Origins of Thermal Comfort contains some interesting historical developments in thermal comfort research. See also Thermal Manikins and Current State of the Science: Health Effects and Indoor Environmental Quality

Building envelope integrates thermal/pv solution

Robert Bean — 2009-09-15T07:29:11-06:00

Building envelope integrates thermal/pv solution

We came across this innovative integrated thermal/pv solution which lends itself well to new buildings and retrofits. As it relates to the thermal component - in principle using the building envelope as a surface to collect and discharge heat makes sense and though we haven’t come across any research papers or design methodologies to study – it is an approach that would have benefits determined by similar design considerations of roof mounted collectors, i.e.: location, orientation, collector performance, etc. We'll see more of these creative solutions as industry begins the massive task of bringing the inventory of inefficient structures into the modern world high performance buildings.

Photo credit: Dawn Solar's Combined Heat and Power System: Dawn Solar Thermal System with PV tiles during construction.

The effects of heating systems on (wood) floor performance in cool temperate climates

Robert Bean — 2009-09-09T19:47:38-06:00

Excerpt: "Timber floors with under floor heating (UFH) systems represent a new and growing trend for the hardwood flooring market in Australia’s southern states. These systems are common in North America and Europe, but experience in Australia is limited with much debate concerning the suitability and performance of Australian flooring material in this application. Installing a wooden floor over a heated surface will lower the expected in-service Equilibrium Moisture Content (EMC), thus floors with UFH should be installed at a lower Moisture Content (MC) than floors with no such heating system."

RBc: There are few better documents adressing the use of radiant floors with hardwood than R. Farrell and S. Gadient's research report for the Centre for Sustainable Architecture with Wood.

If you don't want to read the entire 88 page report, the last words in the conclusion reads, "Wooden floors over UFH can perform well, and could even be argued that a wooden floor installed and operated correctly will out-perform those with conventional heating systems that cause hot-spots in the floor with extreme localised dimensional change. A wooden floor with UFH operated with moderate and gradual temperature changes will apply constant and even heat to the floor avoiding problems associated with localised heating."

Source and credit:hardwood with radiant heated wood floors.

Comparative Toxicogenomics Database

Robert Bean — 2009-09-01T15:22:22-06:00

Comparative Toxicogenomics Database

CTD advances understanding of the effects of environmental chemicals on human health.

The etiology of most chronic diseases involves interactions between environmental factors and genes that modulate important physiological processes. This assumption is supported by the many complex diseases caused by reversible behaviors or avoidable exposures, and by the relatively rare number of diseases attributed to single gene mutations. Environmental factors are implicated in many common conditions such as asthma, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, immune deficiency disorders and Parkinson’s disease; however, the molecular mechanisms underlying these correlations are not well understood.

RBc: This gem of site is useful for those wanting a deeper study in the relationships between the environment and health.