Abstract
Perceived air quality, Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) symptoms and
productivity were studied in a normally furnished office space
ventilated with an outdoor air flow of 3, 10 and 30 L/s per person
(corresponding to aiur changes of 0.6, 2.0 and 6 h-1,
respectively), while all other environmental parameters remained
unchanged. Ventilation was provided by an axial fan mounted in the
window to avoid any potential pollution sources in a traditional
HVAC system, and almost perfect mixing of air was provided at an
air velocity below 0.2 m/s in the occupied zone. At each
ventilation rate, 30 female subjects occupied the office for 4.6
hours in the afternoon, six subjects at a time; they remained
thermally neutral by adjusting their clothing. Subjects assessed
perceived air quality and SBS symptoms, and performed simulated
office work so that their productivity could be assessed.
Increasing the supply of outdoor air reduced the percentage of
people dissatisfied with the perceived air quality (P less than
0.002), the perceived stuffiness of air (P less than 0.05), and
the perceived dryness of throat and mouth (P less than 0.0006),
and eased difficulty in thinking clearly (P less than 0.001). The
productivity of subjects improved monotonically with increasing
ventilation rate, and for each twofold increase of ventilation
rate the overall performance of subjects improved on average by
1.4%. The results of this study confirm the benefits of proper
ventilation of indoor environments.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Proceedings of DKV-Jahrestagung |
Place of Publication | Berlin |
Publisher | DKV |
Publication date | 1999 |
Publication status | Published - 1999 |