Chapters authored
Building for Sustainable Ventilation and Air Quality
Most legislations concerning ventilation are based on perceived air quality criteria, but ventilation is also important for the health of the occupants. The perceived air quality criteria can be viewed as a pragmatic tool to achieve an adequate ventilation for precautionary health measures. From a comfort and health perspective, the ventilation rate and an efficient air distribution are both important for achieving a healthy and comfortable indoor environment. Yet, most legislative requirements focus on the ventilation rate. This is not enough, and it is recommended that legislation also address the air distribution with the same zeal. In particular, the efficient distribution of fresh air to the occupied zones or lowering the concentrations of pollutants in the occupied zones. Because there are clear links between ventilation and health, it is extremely worrying that the “energy efficiency first” principle advocated in the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) has led to decreasing ventilation requirements in the European Union legislations, at the same time as the objective is to aggressively tighten the envelopes of the building stock. A second consequence of EPBD is probably that many naturally ventilated buildings will be retrofitted with mechanical ventilation systems. It is not clear that this would be the more sustainable solution in the long run.
Part of the book: Urban Transition