Air quality - indoor

Brooks, B. O, and Davis, W. F., "Understanding Indoor Air Quality." CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 1992. 

Societies concern with air quality has evolved from medieval times, when breathing smelting fumes was a major hazard, to where we are today (see Chapter 1). In modem society, a parallel effort has been under way to improve air quality in the outside or ambient air, which is the focus of this book, and in the industrial occupational setting in manufacturing and other traditional jobs. A combination of events is moving many countries to consider the quality of air in other locations where we live parts of our lives. Attention is now being refocused on "indoor" air quality. 

In developing countries, priorities have often been different. Industrialization, water and food supply and sanitation, infrastructure improvements, and basic health care are often the focus of the leaders of a country. In some areas, the availability of a job is much more problematic than some consideration about the quality of the air in the workplace or the home. Many dwellings in developing countries do not have closable windows and doors, so the outdoor and indoor air quality issues are different. In some houses where cooking is done by firewood or charcoal, the air quality outdoors may be considerably better than that inside the smoky residence. 

The evolution of our modem society and the concomitant changes in lifestyle, workplace, and housing improvements place concerns about indoor air quality in a different category than for developing countries and from the times of our ancestors. 

Source U S. Environmental Protection Agency Report to Congress on Indoor Air Quality, EPA/400/l-89/001c, August 1989. 

Bayer, C. W., and Black, M. S. (1988a) Indoor Air Quality Evaluations of Three Office Buildings Two of Conventional Construction Designs and One of a Special Design to Reduce Indoor Air Contaminants. Georgia Institute of Technology, Athens, GA. 

Sheldon, L., Zelon, H., Sickles, J., Eaton, C., and Hartwell, T. (1988) "Indoor Air Quality in Public Buildings," Vol II. Environmental Monitoring Systems Laboratory, Office of Research and Development, U.5. Environmental Protection Agency. 

Airborne material affecting the quality of indoor air may be classified as gases or particulate matter. Gases which may be potential problems are radon, CO, NOj, and hydrocarbons. Particulate matter may come from tobacco smoke, mold spores, animal dander, plant spores, and others as shown in Table 23-1. Other factors interact to influence our perception of indoor air quality, including humidity, temperature, lighting, and sound level. 

The control and regulation of indoor air quality are influenced by individual property rights and a complicated mosaic of federal, state, and local government jurisdiction with conflicts, overlaps, and gaps in addressing these issues. Table 23-3 shows a large number of agencies and departments involved in indoor air quality control efforts at the federal level. 

Effort to increase knowledge of indoor air quality problems and controls... 

Investigates USAF facilities for chlordane problems Assesses and corrects HVAC operation to optimize indoor air quality... 

Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality." American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Atlanta, 1981. 

Nazaroff, W. W., and Teichmann, K., Indoor radon. Environ. Sci. Technol. 24, 774-782 (1990). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, "The Inside Story A Guide to Indoor Air Quality." EPA/400/1-88/004, September 1988. 

Why will the command and control approach not work for residenHal indoor air quality ... 

Nagda, N.L. (1999) Guidelines for Monitoring Indoor Air Quality, Taylor and Erancis Inc. 

In the first environment, we are concerned with the potential health risks that chemicals pose to the public, as well as possible impacts on the ecology. In the latter case, we are concerned with indoor air quality and its possible adverse impacts on the health and safety of the workforce. In both cases the health dangers may be either acute, or long-term chronic health risks. We will first discuss general concepts of air pollution and table our discussions on... 

The motivation for ensuring good indoor air quality should be obvious. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 emphasizes the need for standards to protect the health and safety of workers. To fulfill this need, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has developed a strategy for disseminating information that assists employers to protect their workers from workplace hazards. This strategy includes the development of Special NIOSH Hazard Reviews, which support and complement the major standards development and hazard documentation activities of the Institute. These documents deal with... 

Methods, technologies, and energy-efficient practices for indoor-air quality control... 

It is important to understand the role that each of these factors may play in order to prevent, investigate, and resolve and manage indoor air quality problems. 

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