Module 07 Indoor Environmental Quality

Question 1

Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ)

Answer 1

Refers to the quality of the air and environment inside buildings, based on pollutant concentrations and conditions that can affect the health, comfort, and performance or occupants.

Indoor air can be 2 to 5 more pollutant than outdoor air

Question 2

Variables that affect the indoor environment

Answer 2

Temperature
Humidity
Lighting
Acoustics
Air Quality
Control Systems

Question 3

Benefits of Better Indoor Environmental Quality Include:

Answer 3

Reduced Liability
Reduced Employee absenteeism
Reduced employee turnover
Reduced occupant complaints
Reduced vacancy costs
Increased tenant satisfaction and retention 
Increase marketability of the property

Question 4

Strategies for achieving points in IEQ

Answer 4

Improve Indoor Air Quality

Increase Occupant Comfort

Question 5

Sick Building Syndrome (SBS)

Answer 5

Describes those situations in which building occupants experience acute health and comfort effects linked to the time spent in a building, but where no specific illness or cause can be identified.

Question 6

Building Related Illness (BRI)

Answer 6

Symptoms of diagnosable illnesses are identified and can be attributed directly to airborne building contaminants.

Question 7

Strategies for IEQ Management Plan

Answer 7

Specifying less harmful/low-emitting materials

Protecting building materials during construction

Scheduling construction activities to minimize occupant exposure

Isolate areas of work to prevent contamination of clean/occupied spcaces

Ventilating the space to remove air contaminants

Question 8

Strategies to Improve Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)

Answer 8

Avoid the use of materials high in pollutants and volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

Improve ventilation

Question 9

Green Cleaning

Answer 9

the use of environmentally-friendly ingredients and chemicals for household, manufacturing and industrial cleaning. Green cleaning techniques and products avoid the use of chemically-reactive and toxic cleaning products which contain various toxic chemicals, some of which emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

Question 10

Green Seal

Answer 10

is an independent nonprofit organization that promotes the manufacture and sale of environmentally responsible consumer products. IN LEED Green seal usually is used as the standard for low VOC materials and green cleaning

Question 11

indoor environmental quality management plan

Answer 11

a plan that takes into consideration all aspects of the indoor environment and documents strategies to protect the quality of the indoor environment for occupants, especially important during construction and renovations

Question 12

Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV)

Answer 12

standard comparison of the efficiency of an air filter. The MERV scale ranges from 1 (least efficient to 16 (most efficient), and measures a filter’s ability remove particles from 3 to 10 microns in size.

Question 13

Thermal Comfort

Answer 13

Human thermal comfort is defined by ASHRAE as the state of mind that expresses satisfaction with the surrounding environment (ASHRAE Standard 55). Maintaining thermal comfort for occupants of building or other enclosures is one of the important goals of HVAC design engineers.

Question 14

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)

Answer 14

compounds that have a high vapor pressure and low water solubility and therefore can enter the air easily. Many VOCs are human-made chemicals that are used and produced in the manufacture of paints, pharmaceuticals, and refrigerants.