A Study on the Impact of Different Application Ratios of Ultra-Low Emission Green Building Materials on Human Health in Indoor Environments

Abstract

This study is a 3-year national research project. The objective of this study is to examine the influence of formaldehyde and VOC emissions with different application ratios of ultra-low emission (ULE) green building materials(GBMs), and their impact on human health in indoor environments. The testing methods for aldehyde and ketone substances, and VOC substances used in this study are referenced from the ASTM D6670-01 regulations by full size chamber test method, and the ISO 16000-3 and ISO 16000-6 regulated aldehyde and ketone substance, and VOC sampling and analysis methods. Experiments are conducted at 0%, 30%, 50%, 80% and 100% (5 groups) ratios of ultra-low emission (ULE) green building material used, and the emissions are analyzed. The results show that the higher the utility rate of ULE green building material, the more the interior concentration of TVOC can be effectively lowered. Using at least 30% ULE green building material can achieve indoor air quality that is less than the TVOC value standard of 3 ppm set by the Environmental Protection Administration of Executive Yuan, Taiwan. However, under the standard of 300 ug/m3, set by the World Health Organization and the GreenGuard children’s standard of 220 ug/m3, our research shows that the experiment groups using 30%, and not using (0%) ULE green building material, present a health risk, based on the above standards. However using more than 50% ULE green building material can effectively lower the VOC emission level, indicating that by increasing the use of ULE green building material, the IEH can be maintained.