title: Evaluation of Indoor Air Quality Screening Strategies: A Step-Wise Approach for IAQ Screening.
abstract: Conducting a full indoor air quality (IAQ) assessment in air-conditioned offices requires large-scale material and manpower resources. However, an IAQ index can be adopted as a handy screening tool to identify any premises (with poor IAQ) that need more comprehensive IAQ assessments to prioritize IAQ improvements. This study proposes a step-wise IAQ screening protocol to facilitate its cost-effective management among building owners and managers. The effectiveness of three IAQ indices, namely θ₁ (with one parameter: CO₂), θ₂ (with two parameters: CO₂ and respirable suspended particulates, RSP) and θ₃ (with three parameters: CO₂, RSP, and total volatile organic compounds, TVOC) are evaluated. Compared in a pairwise manner with respect to the minimum satisfaction levels as stated in the IAQ Certification Scheme by the Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department, the results show that a screening test with more surrogate IAQ parameters is good at identifying both lower and higher risk groups for unsatisfactory IAQ, and thus offers higher resolution. Through the sensitivity and specificity for identifying IAQ problems, the effectiveness of alternative IAQ screening methods with different monitoring parameters is also reported.
authors.affiliation: Department of Building Services Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong 999077, China. beltw@polyu.edu.hk.
authors.forename: Ling-Tim
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.affiliation: Department of Building Services Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong 999077, China. behorace@polyu.edu.hk.
authors.forename: Kwok-Wai
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Mui
authors.affiliation: Department of Building Services Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong 999077, China. tszwun.tsang@connect.polyu.hk.
authors.forename: Tsz-Wun
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Tsang
mesh_terms: D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor / Q000032:analysis*; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000032:analysis; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D006723:Hong Kong; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D002245:Carbon Dioxide
keywords: air-conditioned office; assessment; indoor air quality; screening