G. Richey, Colden Corp., Philadelphia, PA.
This presentation addresses (1) how perceptions become localized epidemics within a defined group, (2) chemical sensitivity and multiple chemical sensitivity, and (3) the concept and meaning of sick building syndrome. The vast majority of articles on psychosocial factors in relation to the environment if written by doctors. Very little is written on the subject by industrial hygienists (IHs). Various forms of psychosocial response will be discussed, such as collective delusion, anxiety hysteria, mass motor hysteria, epidemic hysteria, and feigning of symptoms. The concept of multiple chemical sensitivity as it relates to the presented psychological concepts is discussed, and we cover why symptoms are a poor indicator of indoor environmental quality. Several case studies are presented, including a discussion of the post-anthrax attack idiopathic skin rash epidemic in schools across the country. Theories of mass psychogenic illness in relation to occupational settings are presented. Structural conduciveness of psychological stress responses is discussed, including variations of such stress reactions. IHs view these illnesses as requiring diagnoses of exclusion. Although IHs are not qualified to make judgment calls regarding the psychological basis of reported or displayed symptoms, they recognize the environmental factors that may be at work and can recommend corrective actions or control measures.
D. Regelbrugge, S. Blonz, G. Crawford, Boelter & Yates, Park Ridge, IL.
Today, constructing new buildings or remodeling existing buildings to be “green” is a hot topic. To encourage and promote this trend, the U.S. Green Building Council has developed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system. This program was developed to establish common standards, promote integrated sustainable design, and raise awareness of green building benefits. This certification is widely sought after by developers, architects, and building owners. Several of the credits available deal with general ventilation requirements as well as conducting air tests for formaldehyde, particulate mater (PM-10), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and 4-phenylcyclohexene (4-PCH). The general requirements of the LEED certification process will be reviewed as they relate to ventilation and indoor air quality. The industrial hygienist’s role in the process will be discussed along with successes and lessons learned from various field studies.
M. Andrew, Forensic Analytical Specialties Inc., Rancho Dominguez, CA; D. Cox, Forensic Analytical Specialties Inc., Hayward, CA; C. Godard, Forensic Analytical Specialties Inc., Durham, OR.
In recent years, people have become increasingly aware of the influence of buildings on the environment in which we live as well as the built environment’s effect on us. Awareness has spawned growth in the area of “green” building. Definitions of green building may vary, but in general, creating healthy environments in which to work and live by way of indoor environmental quality (IEQ) is a prominent feature of current green building rating systems.
As professionals who are dedicated to protecting the health of working people and the public from health hazards, industrial hygienists (IHs) should play a role in green building development. However, that role is not well defined. The available rating systems are focused primarily on building design rather than building performance. Performance testing has shown that design goals related to IEQ are not always realized. This session will examine several case studies in which Forensic Analytical was retained to conduct IH related services for rating system credits in new green buildings. We will examine the problems caused by large buildings occupied in phases, varying types of occupancy and zones, scheduling conflicts, influence of outdoor concentrations, indifference to overall goals of IEQ (credit mining), and lack of knowledge of overall IH principles. In addition, we will examine how the overall principles of IH apply to obtaining credits in green building rating systems. For instance, can choosing certain credits over others work contrary to concerns of occupant health? Will the IEQ credits that IHs help achieve realistically contribute to the health of workers? Often, for the purposes of the green builder, IEQ concerns stop once the building has been released to the owner/occupier. IHs should strive to redefine green building to include performance monitoring and response to complaints that are likely to arise in any work environment.
B. Epstien, Air Quality Sciences Inc., Marietta, GA; D. Brinkerhoff, Air Quality Sciences Inc., Walnut Creek, CA.
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is the U.S. Green Building Council’s rating system for architects, construction contractors, and building operators to achieve certification of sustainable buildings. This program incorporates five key areas related to health and environmental quality: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality (IEQ). Numerous recent building projects incorporating LEED principles have been tested according to LEED IEQ Credit 3.2. Preoccupancy air sampling and analysis must meet the following criteria to achieve IEQ credit: maximum concentration limit (MCL) of 500 μg/m3 total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) and MCL of 50 ppb formaldehyde. Airborne particles, 4-phenylcyclohexene, and carbon dioxide are also evaluated. Through careful selection of products and materials, appropriate scheduling and sequencing of construction activities, and adequate ventilation, this criterion should be easily achievable. Two case studies, however, illustrate that numerous individual VOCs including formaldehyde are residual in these buildings. A newly constructed public building in the southeastern United States exceeded the formaldehyde limit, with 67.7 ppb measured. These levels originated from manufactured wood products as well as contents. A building in a mid-Atlantic state exceeded the TVOC limit in four locations, with concentrations ranging from 591 μg/m3 to 1,824 μg/m3. The VOC mixture included a number of individual compounds primarily attributable to finishes such as paints and floor coverings as well as recently installed furnishings. As a result, these buildings did not achieve the LEED IEQ credit and additional building flush-out, retesting, or product replacement were necessary. In both of these cases additional effort in selection of environmentally preferred, low-emitting products as well appropriate sequencing of finishing and installation activities would likely have permitted achievement of acceptable levels of pollutants. These challenges are important factors in pursuing LEED objectives.
D. Walsh, Converse Consultants, Las Vegas, NV.
One of the most important recent developments in the indoor environmental quality field is the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. Many states have implemented tax incentives to build using LEED, and the long-term benefits are becoming increasingly recognized. However, the industrial hygiene (IH) community has had little input into the process. The LEED documents specify methods for assessing indoor air quality before occupancy of the building. Many of these methods are either inappropriate or inadequate. In addition, tracer gas studies are specified as well as low volatile organic compound emitting products, air filter quality, outdoor air amounts, and monitoring. This presentation will informing the IH community of what is going on in LEED and how IHs can get more involved.
L. Horgan, Assessment, Resources & Technologies Inc., New York, NY.
Homeland security issues have required many commercial facilities to harden against bioterrorism attack. One common technology involves the installation of ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) lamps at various points in the air handling system. If these systems are effective against such notoriously resilient agents as Bacillus anthracis, they should also be effective against most of the common microbial organisms, which typically contaminate the air handling system and the occupied spaces it serves. This case study investigated the effectiveness of UVGI lamps on reducing the contamination of the air handling system and the occupied spaces it serves, in terms of common microbial organisms. In addition, problems encountered in the investigation and possible solutions are noted and discussed. The investigation selected two air-handling units for a full-scale evaluation over the course of a year. Both units had the same basic operating parameters and served areas similar in size and layout. One unit consisted of completely new equipment, which was fitted with UVGI lamps at key locations. The second unit has been in operation for approximately 10 years and was not fitted with UVGI lamps. Evaluations were specifically targeted to winter, spring, summer, and fall, to take into account the natural variations in the ambient species and concentrations. The evaluation involved swab sampling of the various components of the air handling system for bacterial and fungal species identification and quantification. Simultaneously, the space served was sampled for airborne viable and nonviable bacterial, fungal, and spore contamination. In addition, four other air handling units, which were fitted with UVGI lamps, were periodically evaluated to determine if the unit that received the full-scale evaluation was representative of units fitted with UVGI lamps.
C. Chen, K. Hou, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; Y. Kuo, Chung Hwa College of Medical Technology, Tainan, Taiwan; C. Chen, S. Huang, C. Chang, Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, Taipei, Taiwan.
In ANSI/AHAM AC-1-2006 (Method for Measuring Performance of Portable Household Electric Room Air Cleaners), clean air delivery rate (CADR) is a measure of the appliance’s ability to reduce aerosol particles in the 0.10- to 11-μm size range. In the present study, the effects were investigated of test chamber size, aerosol size (distribution), aerosol spectrometer, aerosol number concentration, and the leak rate of the test chamber on the CADR measurements. Two types (ESP and filter) of commercially available indoor air cleaners were tested in a standard certification chamber, and a chamber only 1/8th of the volume. Polydisperse aerosol particles were generated using a constant output aerosol generator and an ultrasonic atomizer. The main aerosol spectrometers were a scanning mobility particle sizer and an aerodynamic particle. The results showed that CADR value was a function of aerosol size. The ESP and filter-type air cleaners had significantly different characteristic CADR curves. In general, the ESP air cleaner performed better in aerosol collection, air resistance, and power usage. The relative location and orientation of the air cleaner and aerosol spectrometer in the test chamber had almost no effect on the CADR measurements. The measured CADR values decreased with increasing aerosol number concentration, apparently due to coagulation effect during the natural decay measurement. The coagulation effect became less significant if aerosol number concentration was lower than 1.0×105 #/cm3. Use of a smaller test chamber is possible. However, only the data collected before infiltrated aerosols became significant should be used for calculating the CADR value. Room air cleaners with multilevel performance fan settings normally delivered higher CADR when operated under higher air cleaning mode setting, but not necessary the CADR/watt value, probably due to the difference in fan performance curve.
J. Parker, J. Veranth, R. Larson, E. Wood, H. Kim, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT; S. Packham, Utah Division of Air Quality, Salt Lake City, UT.
This indoor air characterization study is part of an integrated air monitoring and spirometry measurement project to examine the validity of keeping respiratory sensitive elementary school students indoors during poor air quality days. Epidemiology generally correlates population health with air quality measured by central monitoring stations, but people spend most of their time indoors. It is important to increase the available data characterizing the concentration and composition of air pollutants in different types of structures and in different climates. Indoor and outdoor air measured particle mass, particle counts at different sizes, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were sampled at a Salt Lake City, Utah, elementary school during the winter. Three indoor/outdoor pairs of VOC samples were collected using evacuated canisters during different air quality index (AQI) values. Indoor particulate matter of diameter 2.5 µm or less, PM2.5, was measured using a tapered element oscillating microbalance (TEOM) located in the school library. These were compared to outdoor PM2.5 TEOM filter dynamic measuring system (FDMS) measurements. Weekly particle samples were speciated by element analysis. Particle counts were measured using Grimm aerosol spectrometers and segregated into particle sizes ranging from 0.3 to 20+ µm. Indoor VOC concentrations were found to be higher than outdoor concentrations, suggesting that indoor sources are important contributors of VOC exposure. Indoor and outdoor particle levels were markedly different in mass, size-specific counts, and composition. The outdoor submicron ammonium nitrate particles are greatly reduced in the indoor air, and the indoor particulate is dominated by 10-µm and larger particles containing organic carbon. The results suggest that during wintertime temperature inversions that result in elevated AQI, staying indoors in a school building with variable makeup air HVAC reduces exposure to particulate matter of outdoor origin. However, staying indoors increases exposure to low concentrations of coarse organic dust and VOCs of indoor origin.
R. Morse, Morse Zehnter Associates, Troy, NY; P. Haas, Morse Zehnter Associates, West Palm Beach, FL.
The certified industrial hygienist (CIH) needs to understand moisture intrusion and mold. Instructing IH professionals in the causes of mold inevitably requires an explanation of humidity, water vapor drive through building assemblies, and dehumidification. These topics require an understanding of the behavior of water vapor as a gas. Unfortunately, this has proven a difficult concept to understand. Several teaching methods have been attempted over the years. This session presents a unique approach, using computer animations that have been developed to instruct building and materials professionals about the behavior of water vapor and its impact on buildings. These animations have been effectively used in technical presentations as well as in mold remediation training sessions, but they would be new to the IH.