A survey of indoor air quality problems in air-conditioned buildings in India

The indoor environment is intuitively considered a refuge, a safe place not only from inclement weather and temperature extremes but also from outdoor air pollutants. Over the years, buildings have been made more airtight to conserve energy The scientific evidence has indicated that the air within homes and other buildings can be more severely polluted than the outdoor air in even the largest and most industrialized cities. Other research indicates that people spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors. Thus, for many people, the risks to health may be greater due to exposure to air pollution indoors than outdoors. Maintaining a healthy and comfortable indoor environment in any building requires integrating many components of a complex system. A survey was conducted to study the air quality related factors and their influence in various types of offices. The parameters such as CO2 content, air velocity, dust, odour and humidity were analyzed. This survey will helpful in detecting the presence or absence of health problems. It is noticed that among various building analyzed Restaurants, software companies and computer centres are found to be poorly ventilated. Odour seems to be a problem in majority of the buildings.