Assessment of Ventilation Efficiency in School Classrooms Based on Indoor–Outdoor Particulate Matter and Carbon Dioxide Measurements

Jakub Bartyzel, Damian Zięba, Jarosław Nęcki and Mirosław Zimnoch
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Jakub Bartyzel: Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Krakow, Poland
Damian Zięba: Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Krakow, Poland
Jarosław Nęcki: Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Krakow, Poland
Mirosław Zimnoch: Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Krakow, Poland

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 14, 1-9

Abstract: The concentration of indoor suspended particulate matter is considered to be one of the main factors that affect health and quality of life. In Poland, in response to the pressure of public opinion, a few thousand air purifiers have been installed in public buildings where children spend time. However, another factor that also impacts upon the quality of indoor air, namely increased CO 2 mixing ratios, is frequently overlooked. The only way to remove CO 2 excess from interiors is through intensive ventilation. This is often an action at odds with the need to maintain low concentrations of particulate matter in indoor air. Two methods are presented to assess the rate of air exchange using CO 2 or particulate matter as a tracer. One of the methods using indoor/outdoor PM (particulate matter) concentrations is based on the use of box models for analysis. The second one uses indoor CO 2 concentration change analysis. At the tested locations, they showed large deviations of the determined values of the air exchange coefficients from its limits. Both methods showed consistent ventilation parameters estimation.

Keywords: particulate matter; carbon dioxide; air pollution; ventilation; box models; indoor air quality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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