Abstract
The Public Health and Safety Department of Dubai Municipality had evaluated the indoor air quality in public buildings in 2013, then established the IAQ (Indoor Air Quality) regulation. Even though IAQ in public building is in control, indoor air pollution in new and renovated housing is still very problematic. The objective of this paper is to measure the indoor air quality of the residential unit in an apartment after renovation to evaluate the actual condition and to analyze the influential factors. As a methodology, field measurements, resident interviews, and observations were conducted for 20 residential units to investigate basic information, renovation contents, ventilation characteristics, and SBS (Sick Building Syndrome) symptoms. The results showed that renovation related to the indoor air quality was the replacement of finishing materials. It was statistically proven that the average CO2 for each house was 683–2309.4 ppm, and 15 houses exceeded the WHO IAQ standards. TVOC had an average concentration of 0–3.0 ppm per house, exceeding the standard in 10 houses. Formaldehyde (CH2O) had an average concentration of 0–1.02 ppm per house, exceeding the WHO IAQ standard (0.1 ppm) in 12 houses. However, even though the indoor air quality was polluted, the residents were hardly aware of it based on subjective response survey. As the amount of renovation increases, the concentration of formaldehyde (CH2O) increases significantly, and excessive renovation should be avoided. This study will serve as a basic dataset to suggest that the new IAQ regulation not be compulsory for residents; rather, they must induce contractors with stipulation to maintain IAQ during and after renovation.
Highlights
The measurement of the indoor air pollutants of a few residential units had the result of high fluctuation
Since this paper aims to build the basic data for renovated apartment in Dubai, the renovation was classified with total amount and room types
This study aims to improve the indoor air quality of residential buildings in Dubai, and the results of the study are summarized as follows
Summary
Since 2000, global awareness on indoor air quality in new buildings such as the Sick. Since indoor air pollution is mostly caused by the sources that release toxic gases or particles into the air, the first solution for IAQ is to use sustainable building materials. The importance of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) in new buildings and in existing buildings has been highlighted [7,8,9]. After The Public Health and Safety Department of Dubai Municipality had initiated to evaluate the indoor air in public buildings such as in educational institutions, universities, schools, nurseries, kindergartens, and health care centers in 2013 [14], they established the IAQ (Indoor Air Quality) stipulation with less than 0.08 ppm (parts per million) of formaldehyde, less than 300 micrograms/m3 of TVOC (Total Volatile Organic Compound), and less than 150 micrograms/m3 of suspended particulates (less than 10 microns) in 8 h of continuous monitoring prior to occupancy [15,16].
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