Effects of Renovation Work on Air Quality and Occupants Health in University Buildings

Abstract

This study aimed to prevent chemical air pollution and reduce its influence on occupants' health in a university building under renovation. Since starting the renovation work, the occupants' health status was monitored using questionnaires every summer and winter. According to a first questionnaire collected before the renovation, subjective symptoms were not observed. However, some occupants complained about odor after moving into their new rooms. Therefore, all interior materials used for the construction work were examined in small chambers to obtain their chemical emission characteristics. The assembled floor, which was a polyvinyl chloride floor sheet combined with a concrete slab by adhesive, was predicted to be the main source of odor in the renovated rooms. Two strategies were implemented individually in rooms to remove these odorous chemicals; a chemical filter in indoor air conditioning units and forced ventilation with hot-humid outdoor air. The performance of each technique was validated by measuring the indoor concentration before and after operation. These results showed that both strategies had a significant effect on reducing volatile organic compounds (VOCs), in a practical way.

Composition of heavy metals and airborne fibers in the indoor environment of a building during renovation

“…The renovation and remodeling of buildings are usually the main sources of indoor air pollutants (Lioy et al 1992;Turner 1998;Yiin et al 2004;Bogovski et al 2007;Young et al 2008;Hasegawa et al 2009), with dust, heavy metals, fibers, gases, bio-aerosols, volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds the major air pollutants generated by renovation actions (Hameed et al 2004). Exposure to lead, for example, can occur when leadbased paints are improperly removed from surfaces through sanding, dry scraping, flame burning and demolition (Sen et al 2002;Farfel et al 2003;Bernstein et al 2008).…”