Quality of the Indoor Environment in Elderly Care Centers in Two Cities in Central Portugal: Viseu and Covilhã
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Physical Characterization of the Studied Buildings and Compartments
2.1. City of Viseu
2.2. City of Covilhã
3. Regulatory Requirements, Standards, and Experimental Conditions
4. Materials and Methods
4.1. Experimental Conditions in the City of Viseu
4.2. Experimental Conditions in the City of Covilhã
5. Presentation and Critical Analysis of Results
5.1. Viseu
5.1.1. ECC 1
5.1.2. ECC 2—1st Trial
5.2. Covilhã
5.2.1. 1st Trial
5.2.2. 2nd Trial
6. Conclusions and Recommendations
Author Contributions
Funding
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
Nomenclature
A | Area of a zone, [m2] |
ACH | Air change rate, [h−1] |
CH2O | Formaldehyde |
CO2 | Carbon dioxide |
E, NE, NW, SE, SW, W | Cardinal points: E—East; NE—Northeast; NW—Northwest; SE—Southeast; SW—south-west; W—West |
ECC | Elderly Care Centers |
HVAC | Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning |
IAQ | Indoor Air Quality |
IEQ | Indoor Environment Quality |
I/O | Indoor/Outdoor ratio |
LNEC | National Laboratory for Civil Engineering |
Max | Maximum |
Min | Minimum |
MT | Margin of Tolerance |
MV | Mechanical Ventilation |
N | Number of measurement points |
n | Number of values measured to average 8 h |
NV | Natural Ventilation |
Perc | Percentage of time that exceeds a certain value |
q | Air flow rate, [m3/h] |
RH | Relative Humidity, [–] |
RR | Restroom |
T | Temperature, [°C] |
Tmp | Running mean outdoor temperature, [°C] |
TVOC | Total Volatile Organic Compounds |
VOC | Volatile Organic Compound |
Greek symbols | |
Δ | Difference |
μ | Mean |
σ | Standard deviation |
Subscripts | |
av | Average (arithmetic mean) |
ext | Referring to the exterior |
i | Referring to a zone |
int | Referring to the interior |
Max | Maximum |
RECS | Referring to Ordinance 353-A/2013 |
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Buildings | Rooms | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year of Construction | Climate Control/Heating System | Ventilation System | Designation | Predominant Orientation | Area [m2] | Usual Maximum Occupancy/No. of Residents | |
ECC 1 a | 1994 | Intermittent heating with water radiators | NV | Room 1 | NW | 20.58 | 1 |
Room 2 | SE | 20.58 | 2 | ||||
Room 3 | NW | 20.58 | 2 | ||||
Living room | SE and SW | 257.32 | 25 | ||||
ECC 2 b | 1869 | Intermittent heating with water radiators | NV | Room 1 | E and NE | 24.61 | 3 |
Room 2 | W | 22.79 | 3 | ||||
Living room 1 | W | 39.76 | 25 | ||||
Living room 2 c | W | 39.76 | 25 |
Buildings | Compartments | Flooring | Walls | Ceiling | Solar Protection | Windows | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Interior | Exterior | ||||||
ECC 1 | Room 1 | Wooden parquet | Plastered | Plastered | Blackout curtains | Blinds | Aluminum without thermal brake; side hung windows; double glazing |
Room 2 | |||||||
Room 3 | |||||||
Living room | Ceramic tile | Vertical blinds with fabric slats | None | Aluminum without thermal brake; sliding windows; double glazing | |||
ECC 2 | Room 1 | Vinyl | Plastered | Plastered | Blackout curtains + semi-opaque curtains | None | Aluminum without thermal brake; side hung windows; double glazing |
Room 2 | |||||||
Living room 1 | |||||||
Living room 2 | Blackout fabric roller blinds |
Building | Compartments | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year of Construction | Climate Control/Heating System | Ventilation System | Designation | Predominant Orientation | Area [m2] | Usual Maximum Occupancy/No. of Residents | |
ECC 3 | 2002 | Intermittent heating with water radiators; HVAC in living room and dining hall | RR in the living room and dining hall: MV-intermittent extraction | Living room | E | 134.00 | 25 |
Dining hall | E | 134.00 | 50 | ||||
RR of the rooms: NV-opening of windows | Triple room | SE | 33.92 | 3 |
Solar Protection | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Building | Compartments | Flooring | Walls | Ceiling | Interior | Exterior | Windows |
ECC 3 | Room | Vinyl and ceramic tile | Ceramic tile | Plasterboard | Slightly transparent curtains | Blinds | Aluminum without thermal brake; sliding windows; double glazing |
Living room/dining hall | Vinyl | Semi-opaque fabric roller blinds | None |
Parameters | Protection Threshold in New Buildings | Margin of Tolerance b (MT c) | Protection Threshold b | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
[mg/m3] | [ppmv] | [%] | [mg/m3] | [ppmv] | ||
Physico-chemical pollutants | TVOC [19] | 0.6 | 0.26 a | 100 | 1.2 | 0.52 a |
CH2O [19] | 0.1 | 0.08 | ||||
CO2 [19] | 2250 | 1250 | 30 | 2925 | 1625 | |
Recommended/regulated level | ||||||
Hygrothermal comfort | T [20,21,22] | 20–25 °C | ||||
RH [22,23] | 30–70% |
Parameters | Instrument | Accuracy | Measurement Range | Duration of Measurement | Maximum Measurement Period a |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
T RH CO2 | Telaire 7001 with data logger U12-013 coupled to record data | ±0.35 °C (0 to 50 °C); ±2.5% (10 to 90%); ±50 ppm | −20 to70 °C; 5 to 95%; 0 to 10,000 ppm on the display; 0 to 4000 ppm on the external connection | 1 min | 4 days |
T RH | Data logger U12-012 | ±0.35 °C (0 to 50 °C); ±2.5% (10 to 90%) | −20 to 70 °C; 5 to 95% | 1 min | 4 days |
T RH CO2 | Fluke 975 AirMeter | ±0.9 °C (40 to 60 °C); ±0.5 °C (5 to 40 °C); ±1.1°C (−20 to 5 °C); ±2% (10 to 90%); 2.75% + 75 ppm | −20 to 60 °C; 10 to 90%; 0 to 5000 ppm | 1 min | 4 days |
TVOC | PhoCheck Tiger (PID) | ±5% of the display reading ± one digit | 1 ppb to 20,000 ppm | 30 s | 10 h |
Building | Compartment | Area [m2] | Volume [m3] | Minimum Number of Measuring Points | Number of Measured Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
ECC 3 | Living room | 134.00 | 375.2 | 2 | 3 |
Canteen | 134.00 | 375.2 | 2 | 3 | |
Triple room | 33.92 | 95.0 | 1 | 1 |
Parameters | Instruments | Accuracy | Measuring Range | Measuring Interval a | Measuring Period b |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
CH2O | Formaldemeter htV-M | ±10% | 0–10 ppm | Punctual a | 3 measurements spaced every 5 min |
CO2 | TSI Velocicalc 9565-P (986 probe) | ±3% or 50 ppm, whichever is greater | 0–5000 ppm | 15 s | 3 measurements 5 min each |
TVOC | TSI Velocicalc 9565-P (986 probe; PID) | ±20% (according to the representative’s information) | 0.01–20 ppm, isobutylene | 15 s | 3 measurements 5 min each |
T RH | Extech RH520 | ±1.0 °C; ±3.0% | –28–60 °C; 10–95% | 1 min | 15 to 30 days |
CO2 [ppm] | TVOC [ppm] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Compartment | Max | μ ± σ | Maximum of 8 h Means | Max | μ ± σ | Maximum of 8 h Means (n = 480) |
Room 1 | 1272 | 78 ± 83 | 888 | 0.86 | 0.05 ± 0.06 | 0.05 |
Room 2 | 1343 | 710 ± 101 | 840 | 2.60 | 0.20 ± 0.25 | 0.24 |
Room 3 | 1324 | 705 ± 245 | 850 | 0.32 | 0.07 ± 0.06 | 0.08 |
Living room | 2538 | 1562 ± 335 | 1861 | 0.08 | 0.04 ± 0.02 | 0.04 |
Tint [°C] | RHint [%] | Text [°C] | ΔT [°C] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Compartment | μ ± σ | Perc ≤ 20 °C | Perc ≥ 25 °C | μ ± σ | Perc ≤ 30% | Perc ≥ 70% | ||
Room 1 | 19.6 ± 0.9 | 64 | 0 | 73 ± 1 | 0 | 99 | 9.9 ± 2.6 | 9.7 |
Room 2 | 19.9 ± 0.8 | 55 | 0 | 70 ± 2 | 0 | 51 | 10.0 | |
Room 3 | 20.4 ± 0.8 | 31 | 0 | 68 ± 2 | 0 | 21 | 10.5 | |
Room 4 | 19.5 ± 0.8 | 74 | 0 | 69 ± 3 | 0 | 49 | 9.6 | |
Room 5 | 19.7 ± 0.7 | 63 | 0 | 69 ± 3 | 0 | 46 | 9.8 | |
Living room 1 | 24.4 ± 0.3 | 0 | 3 | 52 ± 4 | 0 | 0 | 10.1 ± 2.5 | 14.3 |
Living room 2 | 23.1 ± 0.8 | 0 | 0 | 59 ± 2 | 0 | 0 | 13.0 | |
Living room 3 | 22.4 ± 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 57 ± 5 | 0 | 0 | 12.3 |
Compartment | ACHav [h−1] a | qRECS [m3/(h-person)] b | Volume [m3] | Maximum Usual Occupancy—Number of Residents | ACHRECS [h−1] c |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Living room 1 | 0.48 | 24 | 117.69 | 25 | 5.10 |
Living room 2 | 0.39 | 24 | 71.97 | 20 | 6.67 |
Compartment | CO2 [ppm]Max b | TVOC [ppm]Max b | CH2O [ppm]Max b | |
---|---|---|---|---|
ECC 3 | Living room | 889 | 0.25 | 0.07 |
Dining hall | 694 a | 0.19 | 0.06 | |
Triple room | 684 a | 0.33 | 0.13 |
Tint [°C] | RHint [%] | Text [°C] | ΔT [°C] | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Compartment | μ ± σ | Perc ≤ 20 °C | Perc ≥ 25 °C | μ ± σ | Perc ≤ 30% | Perc ≥ 70% | μ ± σ | ||
ECC 3 | Living room | 23.8 ± 1.2 | 7 | 16 | 44 ± 5 | 0 | 0 | 10.4 ± 4.9 | 13.4 |
Dining hall | 22.7 ± 1.3 | 2 | 1 | 46 ± 5 | 0 | 0 | 7.4 ± 3.3 | 15.3 | |
Triple room | 22.0 ± 2.3 | 26 | 11 | 47 ± 7 | 1 | 0 | 7.4 ± 3.3 | 14.6 |
CO2 [ppm] | ACHav [h−1] | ACHRECS [h−1] | TVOC [ppm] | CH2O [ppm]Max | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Compartment | μ ± σ | Perc ≥ 1625 | μ ± σ | Perc ≥ 0.52 | ||||
ECC 3 | Living room | 723 ± 253 | 0.8 | 0.22 | 1.6 | 0.04 ± 0.09 | 6.7 | 0.09 |
Triple room | 890 ± 335 | 0.0 | 0.81 | 0.5 | 0.17 ± 0.15 | 7.3 | 0.04 |
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Pinto, M.; Lanzinha, J.; Viegas, J.; Infante, C.; Freire, T. Quality of the Indoor Environment in Elderly Care Centers in Two Cities in Central Portugal: Viseu and Covilhã. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16, 3801. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16203801
Pinto M, Lanzinha J, Viegas J, Infante C, Freire T. Quality of the Indoor Environment in Elderly Care Centers in Two Cities in Central Portugal: Viseu and Covilhã. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2019; 16(20):3801. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16203801
Chicago/Turabian StylePinto, Manuel, João Lanzinha, João Viegas, Catarina Infante, and Tiago Freire. 2019. "Quality of the Indoor Environment in Elderly Care Centers in Two Cities in Central Portugal: Viseu and Covilhã" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 16, no. 20: 3801. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16203801