Well-being in buildings


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Time to clear the air


Exposure to poor indoor air quality (IAQ) has a range of profoundly negative effects on the health and comfort of building occupants. Thankfully, there are solutions you can offer your customers that will overcome these problems. Mark Taylor of Camfil explains


well-being programme they introduce. There are two powerful reasons for this. First, the quality of the air we breathe has a huge impact on our health and well-being; globally, air pollution is the leading environmental cause of premature death, contributing to the equivalent of 5% of all fatalities worldwide. Second, each of us inhales more than 25 million particles with every breath we take; the more contaminants we ingest, the greater the chance of sickness and ill-health. Poor air quality results from a range of


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chemicals in the air. Outdoors, in a city, for example, it is caused by fumes from cars and buses, particularly diesel engines, but other sources include industrial processes. Indoor sources of poor air quality include dust and glass fibre from building materials as well as volatile organic compounds from workplace cleansers, solvents and disinfectants. Other sources include gas emissions from furniture, carpets and paints; dust mites from carpets, fabric and cushions; microbial contaminants such as bacteria from condensate pans, and ozone from photocopiers. Particulate matter (PM) is a particular threat. Comprising of a complex mixture of solid and liquid particles of organic and inorganic substances suspended in the air, its major components are sulphate, nitrates, ammonia, sodium chloride, black carbon, mineral dust and water. However, PM is generally manmade and has


physical and chemical characteristics that vary by location, so air pollution varies from place to place. Spending a day on the streets of Beijing, for example, will have the same negative effect on your respiratory tract as staying 30 days in Paris. As building envelopes have become increasingly airtight because of the requirements of energy efficiency, so it has become more practical to treat them as ‘safe havens’ from dirty outside air. To achieve this, ‘bad’ air must be prevented from entering the building in the first place. Air filtration is integral to this because it can provide impressive air cleaning capabilities; a well-sealed building


 January 2020


s staff welfare becomes an increasingly key issue for progressive companies, air quality needs to be placed front and centre of any


envelope and effective filtration of incoming supply air can reduce particle penetration by 78%. Filters form a vital first line of defence in this


regard. However, beware – indoor air contamination can be up to 10 times worse than outside air, partly because the pollution is trapped, but also because additional pollutants are generated inside from carpets, photocopiers and other sources. If air is not effectively filtered and cleaned there is a risk that it will contain a very large quantity of the harmful particulates that find their way into people’s respiratory tracts and circulation systems.


So how do we combat this invisible enemy? Fitting air purifiers in rooms can result in a consistently high level of air quality being achieved, even if the number of particulates and other substances in the outdoor air varies significantly. Air purifiers create a far more productive


environment by ensuring building occupants inhale a lot less unhealthy air and result in a more productive indoor environment at work. At home, air purifiers decrease the need for cleaning since they remove a large portion of the dust that is generated daily. My own company’s City Touch air purifier, for


These particles and other substances can


combine with those already present inside buildings and become more aggressive and harmful, making indoor air pollution many more times as hazardous as the outdoor variety. Pollutants that can affect air quality inside buildings


fall into one or more of the following categories: • Particulate matter – includes dust, smoke and tobacco smoke, pollen, animal dander, particles generated from combustion appliances such as cooking stoves, and particles associated with tiny organisms such as dust mites, mould, bacteria and viruses.


• Gaseous pollutants – come from combustion processes. Sources include solid fuel heating sources with insufficient venting, gas cooking stoves, vehicle exhaust and tobacco smoke. They also come from building materials, furnishings, adhesives, paint and varnish, cleaning products and pesticides. • Environmental pollution – outside contaminants such as vehicle fumes and industrial pollution can seep into buildings, but there is also a risk from naturally occurring gases such as radon.


example, is designed for all types of indoor environments. It incorporates two hospital grade HEPA filters and molecular VOC filters to provide air purification in large rooms up to 60m². Suitable for all types of indoor environments – including hospitals, hotels, offices, schools and public environments and where high quality medical grade air purification is required, it creates a heathier indoor environment, reduces the incidence of asthma and other allergies and neutralises odour by filtering out harmful particulates in the air. HEPA filters have a lifespan of around 18 months between changes which is more sustainable and greener than most other solutions. The human body has natural defences against dirty air such as nasal hair and mucus membranes which trap larger particles as they are breathed in, but smaller particles can penetrate deep down into the finer structures of the lungs, passing from there into the bloodstream, reaching critical organs. Indoor air quality doesn’t just impact on physical


well-being, but also on mental health. There has, for example, been a great deal of publicity about the effects of air pollution on people’s ability to think clearly; poor IAQ can have a dramatic effect on the way people’s brains function, not just for children’s learning capability, but also the efficiency and productivity of people at work and their ability to perform to the required level. Installing high quality air purifiers really is a no


brainer for your customers. By providing clean air, air purifiers improve people’s health and performance, protect critical manufacturing processes, boost productivity and safeguard the environment.


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