Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering

Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science

Concordia University

Course: BLDG 475 – Indoor Air Quality

BLDG 6751 – Indoor Air Quality & Ventilation

Instructor: Dr. Chang-Seo Lee

e-mail: bldg475@gmail.com (preferred means of communication)
Office: TBD (Temporary - EV15.235 IAQ Lab.)
Tel: 514-848-2424 (ext. 3215 - Temporary )
Office Hours: Friday, 13:00 – 14:30 or by appointment through e-mail

Term: Winter 2019

Lectures: Friday 14:45 – 17:30 in MB 3.445 (SGW)

Description: People spend most of their time indoor and the levels of many air pollutants are higher
in indoors than outdoor. In this course, first we will study different types of air pollutants
found in indoor environments including their characteristics, sources, transfer
mechanisms and health effects. We will learn investigation procedures and methods for
the IAQ problem buildings. We will study on the techniques to prevent or reduce IAQ
problems like source control, ventilation, and various air filtration and purification
technologies. IAQ related criteria adopted in green building rating systems will be
covered.

References: ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 62 Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality

ASHRAE Handbook Fundamental 2017 (Chap. 10, 11, 12, 13, 16, 35 & 36)
ASHRAE Handbook HAVC Applications 2015 (Chap. 8, 18, 23, 45, 46, 59, 60 & 62)
ASHRAE Handbook HVAC Systems and Equipment 2016 (Chap. 4, 17, 20 & 29)
ASHRAE Indoor Air Quality Guide 2009
WHO Guidelines for Indoor Air Quality: Dampness and Mould 2009
WHO Guidelines for Indoor Air Quality: Selected Pollutants 2010
WHO Handbook on Indoor Radon: A Public Health Perspective 2009

Journals: Indoor Air

Atmospheric Environment
American Industrial Hygiene Association Journal
Environmental Science & Technology
Environment International
Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association
Learning Outcomes and Graduate Attributes:

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to,

1. Understand the real-life indoor air quality related problems and causes and compare Sick
Building Syndrome and Building Related Illnesses.
2. Classify indoor air contaminants, and describe a) main sources, b) health effects, c) prevention
and remediation methods relevant to each indoor air contaminant group.
3. Explain different forms of mass balance equations, and apply mass balance analysis tool suitable
for the given conditions.
4. Apply IAQ field investigation methods and procedures for problem buildings, interpret the
observation results and make recommendations.
5. Employ fundamental theory and characterization methods for ventilation design.
6. Develop design and operation/maintenance protocol of building ventilation systems complying
ASHRAE standard 62.1 and green building rating systems
7. Compare different air cleaning technologies and determine suitable technologies for the given
conditions
8. Design and conduct independent research through literature review and/or simulation, and
communicate technical information in effective manners

Graduate Attributes are generic characteristics specified by Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board
(CEAB), expected to be exhibited by graduates of Canadian engineering schools. The following table
summarizes how aforementioned learning outcomes are relate to Graduate Attributes.

Course Learning Outcomes

Graduate Attribute
#1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 #8
A knowledge base for engineering I D D D D A I
Problem analysis I D D D D
Investigation I D D
Design A A D
Use of engineering tools D A D
Individual and team work D
Communication skills I D D
Professionalism
Impact of engineering on society and the
I I D
environment
Ethics and equity
Economics and project management
Life-long learning I D
I (Introduced): Introductory level
D (Developed): Intermediate development level
A (Applied): Advanced application level
Grading Scheme: Assignments/Class Activity 30%
Assignment #1 5%
Assignment #2 10%
Assignment #3 10%
Class Activity 5%
Course Project 30%
Progress report required (-10% in case of no submission)
Quality of project & final report 25%
Participation of oral presentation 5%
Final Examination 40%
The passing grade is 50% in total grade and 50% in the final exam.

Assignments
There will be three assignments. Assignments will be handed out during the class and subsequently posted
in Moodle. Electronic submission is encouraged. In case of electronic submission, assignments should be
sent to bldg475@gmail.com before the start of the class. There will be a penalty of -20% per day for late
submission. While general discussions of assignments among students are permitted, every assignment
requires independent and original work, and individual submission. Students should be aware of the
Academic Code of Conduct (http://www.concordia.ca/students/academic-integrity/code.html)
concerning cheating, plagiarism and the possible consequences of violating this code.

Class Activity
A group class activity is designed to explore air cleaning technologies and devices, and it will end with mini-
presentation by each group.

Course Project
Course project is mandatory in this course. It has to be a group project with maximum 4 members. First a
short proposal describing the topic, objective, methodology and milestones should be submitted. The
instructor will review it and contact the students when there is a need to modify the proposed project.
Progress report should be submitted by the due date, and late or no submission will result in the penalty
of -10% in the course project mark. The results of the course project must be presented in a final technical
report and an oral presentation. Every student must participate in the oral presentation, and attend all
oral presentation. Zero mark will be assigned in case of absence during the oral presentations.

Final Exam
There will be a common three-hour final examination during the examination period. It will be a closed-
book exam, and only ENCS Faculty approved calculator will be allowed during the final exam. The final
exam will cover the materials from the entire course.
Tentative Topics & Schedule

Week Special Event

Date Lecture Topics
No. (Due date)

Introduction to indoor air quality

1 Jan. 11, 2019
Sick building syndrome & building related illnesses

2 Jan. 18, 2019 Inorganic gaseous air contaminants

3 Jan. 25, 2019 Organic gaseous air contaminants Assignment #1

4 Feb. 1, 2019 Particulate matters in indoor air Project proposal

5 Feb. 8, 2019 Biological agents in indoor air

6 Feb. 15, 2019 Biological agents in indoor air & moisture control

7 Feb. 22, 2019 Other indoor air pollutants: Radon and asbestos Assignment #2

8 Mar. 1, 2019 President's Holiday, University closed (No class)

IAQ investigation procedures and methods for Project progress

9 Mar. 8, 2019
problem buildings report

IAQ measurement techniques;

10 Mar. 15, 2019
Fundamentals of ventilation

11 Mar. 22, 2019 Ventilation design in ASHRAE Standard 62.1 Assignment #3

Ventilation design in ASHRAE Standard 62.1;

12 Mar. 29, 2019
Air filtration and purification techniques

13 Apr. 5, 2019 Project oral presentation

Project oral presentation

14 Apr. 12, 2019 Project final report
IAQ related criteria in green building rating systems
Rights and Responsibilities
All students must adhere to Academic Integrity in every work involved in this course.

Plagiarism:
The most common offense under the Academic Code of Conduct is plagiarism which the Code defines as
“the presentation of the work of another person as one’s own or without proper acknowledgement.”
This could be material copied word for word from books, journals, internet sites, professor’s course notes,
etc. It could be material that is paraphrased but closely resembles the original source. It could be the work
of a fellow student, for example, an answer on a quiz, data for a lab report, a paper or assignment
completed by another student. It might be a paper purchased through one of the many available sources.
Plagiarism does not refer to words alone - it can also refer to copying images, graphs, tables, and ideas.
“Presentation” is not limited to written work. It also includes oral presentations, computer assignments
and artistic works. Finally, if you translate the work of another person into French or English and do not
cite the source, this is also plagiarism.

In Simple Words:
Do not copy, paraphrase or translate anything from anywhere without saying where you obtained it!
(Source: The Academic Integrity Website: http://provost.concordia.ca/academicintegrity/plagiarism/)

List of Services
 BCEE Academic Advisors
o Undergraduate: Dr. Luis Amador (luis.amador@concordia.ca)
o Graduate: Dr. Fariborz Haghighat (fariborz.haghighat@concordia.ca)
 Concordia Counselling and Development offers career services, psychological services, student
learning services, etc. (http://cdev.concordia.ca/)
 The Concordia Library Citation and Style Guides
(http://library.concordia.ca/help/howto/citations.html)
 Advocacy and Support Services (http://supportservices.concordia.ca/)
 Student Transition Centre (http://stc.concordia.ca/)
 New Student Program (http://newstudent.concordia.ca/)
 Access Centre for Students with Disabilities (http://supportservices.concordia.ca/disabilities/)
 Student Success Centre (http://studentsuccess.concordia.ca/)
 The Academic Integrity Website (http://provost.concordia.ca/academicintegrity/)
 Financial Aid & Awards (http://web2.concordia.ca/financialaid/)
 Health Services (http://www-health.concordia.ca/)

Other Remark
Events beyond the control of the University or the instructor may require changes to this outline.