Stamp, S;
Burman, E;
Shrubsole, C;
Chatzidiakou, L;
Mumovic, D;
Davies, M;
(2021)
Seasonal variations and the influence of ventilation rates on IAQ: A case study of five low-energy London apartments.
Indoor and Built Environment
10.1177/1420326X211017175.
(In press).
Preview |
Text
1420326x211017175.pdf - Published Version Download (1MB) | Preview |
Abstract
The indoor air quality (IAQ) of five low-energy London apartments has been assessed through the measurement of 16 key pollutants, using continuous and diffusive methods across heating and non-heating seasons. This case study approach aimed to assess the presence of pollutants within low-energy apartments and to better understand the role of ventilation and seasonal variations in indoor air quality. The results indicate strong seasonal variations, driven by increased natural ventilation rates over the summer monitoring period. A combined metric for indoor and outdoor pollutants (Itot) suggests that the IAQ in the winter (Itot = 17.7) is more than twice as bad as that seen in the summer (Itot = 8.6). Formaldehyde concentrations were lower in the non-heating season, indicating increased ventilation rates more than offset increased off-gassing, in contrast to findings in other studies. However, increased summertime ventilation rates were observed to increase the proportion of outdoor pollutants entering the internal environment. This resulted in higher indoor concentrations of NO2 in the summer than the winter, despite significant reductions in outdoor concentrations. These results demonstrate the impact of ventilation practices upon IAQ, the influence of occupant actions and the complex relationship ventilation rates play in balancing indoor and outdoor sources of air pollution.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Seasonal variations and the influence of ventilation rates on IAQ: A case study of five low-energy London apartments |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1177/1420326X211017175 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1177/1420326X211017175 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment > Bartlett School Env, Energy and Resources |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10129257 |
Archive Staff Only
 |
View Item |
