Weekly variation of indoor air quality in a nursing room of a day-care center near the roadside

The European energy policy pushes the member states to transform building stock into nearly Zero-Energy Buildings (nZEB). This paper is focused on data collected from existing nZEB day-care centres,in order to be able to assess possible differences between predicted and actual energy and indoorenvironmental performance. Building structures, service systems and the indoor climate and energyperformance of five day-care centres were investigated in Estonia, Finland and Norway.Indoor climate condition measurements showed that in general, the thermal environment and indoor airquality corresponded to the highest indoor climate categories I and II (EN 15251). Building heating andventilation systems in studied buildings are working without major problems. Good indoor climate conditions were also reflected in the occupant satisfaction questionnaires. For most of the studied buildings, over 80%of the people marked all indoor environment condition parameters (thermal comfort, indoor air quality,acoustics, odour and illuminance) acceptable. The thermal environment in the cooling season was reportedproblematic because it was lower than the minimum temperature for indoor climate category II.Energy consumption analysis showed that measured real energy use was higher, or even significantlyhigher, than the energy use calculated during the design phase. Potential causes of the higher actualenergy consumption are caused by differences of measured and designed solutions, methodology of theenergy calculations, and the differences in user behaviour.Lessons learnt from previously constructed day-care centres can be utilised in the planning and designof new nZEBs.

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Monitoring of fungal spores in the indoor air of preschool institution facilities in Novi Sad

Zbornik Matice srpske za prirodne nauke ◽

10.2298/zmspn1324297n ◽

2013 ◽

pp. 297-305 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Milana Novakovic ◽

Maja Karaman ◽

Dragan Radnovic ◽

Predrag Radisic ◽

Branko Sikoparija

Keyword(s):

Indoor Air ◽

Day Care ◽

Respiratory Diseases ◽

Care Center ◽

Fungal Spores ◽

Day Care Center ◽

Air Contamination ◽

Care Facilities ◽

Novi Sad ◽

Fungi Imperfecti

Fungal spores can cause a range of health problems in humans such as respiratory diseases and mycotoxicoses. Since children are the most vulnerable, the presence of fungal spores in the facilities of preschool and school institutions should be investigated readily. In order to estimate air contamination by fungal spores, air sampling was conducted in eight facilities of the preschool institution in Novi Sad during February and March, 2007. Sedimentation plate method was used for the detection of viable fungal spores, mostly being members of subdv. Deuteromycota (Fungi imperfecti). In 32 samples a total of 148 colonies were developed, among which five genera were identified: Penicillium, Cladosporium, Aspergillus, Alternaria and Acremonium while non-sporulating fungal colonies were labeled as sterile mycelia. Most frequently recorded genera were Penicillium with 46 colonies and Cladosporium with 44 colonies. The genera Aspergillus and Alternaria were represented with 3 colonies each and Acremonium with only 1 colony. The greatest number of colonies emerged in the samples from the day care facilities ?Vendi? (58 colonies) and ?Panda? (49 colonies). Most diverse samples were obtained from the day care center ?Zvoncica?, with presence of all identified genera. These results showed notable presence of fungal spores in the indoor air of Preschool institution facilities and indicated the need for further, more complete seasonal research. Obtained information is considered useful for the evaluation of potential mycofactors that endanger health of children.

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