Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Evaluation of Higher Education Learning Environments

Abstract

Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), particularly in educational facilities, is gainingconsiderable interest and is a synonymous indicator towards evaluatinghuman comfort. Factors such as CO2 concentration, temperature, andhumidity play crucial parts in determining an acceptable level of IAQ.Many studies have also demonstrated that the indoor air quality ofclassrooms affects students’ concentration and performance. Today withthe threat of a global pandemic, the demand of clean & fresh indoor airquality in education buildings is extremely intensive. This study focuseson investigating IAQ situations and changes in different typical functionalspaces of a higher education building in the UK. CO2, temperature, andhumidity data in various learning environment were monitored via dataloggers during the winter. Associated with data monitoring, a set ofquestionnaires surveys were carried out to evaluate the user’s experience.The results of this study show that temperature and CO2 concentrationin the classrooms was constantly higher than the government guidanceon a daily basis. The analysis also shows that temperature and humidityincreased with CO2 levels, but at a much lower rate. This study hasrevealed poor and concerning IAQ in higher education buildings in the UK,particularly in larger rooms with high occupancy. Along with the findings,this paper also identifies possible impact or factors and proposes solutionsto overcome these issues.