Robustness of point measurements of carbon dioxide concentration for the inference of ventilation rates in a wintertime classroom
Indoor air quality in schools and classrooms is paramount for the health and well-being of pupils and staff. Carbon dioxide sensors offer a cost-effective way to assess and manage ventilation provision. However, often only a single point measurement is available which might not be representative of...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Indoor Environments |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950362024000018 |
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| author | Carolanne V.M. Vouriot Maarten van Reeuwijk Henry C. Burridge |
| author_facet | Carolanne V.M. Vouriot Maarten van Reeuwijk Henry C. Burridge |
| author_sort | Carolanne V.M. Vouriot |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Indoor air quality in schools and classrooms is paramount for the health and well-being of pupils and staff. Carbon dioxide sensors offer a cost-effective way to assess and manage ventilation provision. However, often only a single point measurement is available which might not be representative of the CO₂ distribution within the room. A relatively generic UK classroom in wintertime is simulated using Computational Fluid Dynamics. The natural ventilation provision is driven by buoyancy through high- and low-level openings in both an opposite-ended or single-ended configuration, in which only the horizontal location of the high-level vent is modified. CO₂ is modelled as a passive scalar and is shown not to be ‘well-mixed’ within the space. Perhaps surprisingly, the single-ended configuration leads to a ‘more efficient’ ventilation, with lower average CO₂ concentration. Measurements taken near the walls, often the location of CO₂ sensors, are compared with those made throughout the classroom and found to be more representative of the ventilation rate if made above the breathing zone. These findings are robust with respect to ventilation flow rates and to the flow patterns observed, which were tested by varying the effective vent areas and the ratio of the vent areas. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-3747e72ec66749d48b6936962fee8891 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2950-3620 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Indoor Environments |
| spelling | doaj-art-3747e72ec66749d48b6936962fee88912025-08-20T02:50:14ZengElsevierIndoor Environments2950-36202024-03-011110000410.1016/j.indenv.2024.100004Robustness of point measurements of carbon dioxide concentration for the inference of ventilation rates in a wintertime classroomCarolanne V.M. Vouriot0Maarten van Reeuwijk1Henry C. Burridge2Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin Street, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK; Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Centre for Mathematical Sciences, University of Cambridge, Wilberforce Rd, Cambridge CB3 0WA, UK; Corresponding author at: Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, University of Sheffield, Mappin Street, Sheffield S1 3JD, UK.Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Imperial College London, Skempton Building, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UKDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Imperial College London, Skempton Building, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UKIndoor air quality in schools and classrooms is paramount for the health and well-being of pupils and staff. Carbon dioxide sensors offer a cost-effective way to assess and manage ventilation provision. However, often only a single point measurement is available which might not be representative of the CO₂ distribution within the room. A relatively generic UK classroom in wintertime is simulated using Computational Fluid Dynamics. The natural ventilation provision is driven by buoyancy through high- and low-level openings in both an opposite-ended or single-ended configuration, in which only the horizontal location of the high-level vent is modified. CO₂ is modelled as a passive scalar and is shown not to be ‘well-mixed’ within the space. Perhaps surprisingly, the single-ended configuration leads to a ‘more efficient’ ventilation, with lower average CO₂ concentration. Measurements taken near the walls, often the location of CO₂ sensors, are compared with those made throughout the classroom and found to be more representative of the ventilation rate if made above the breathing zone. These findings are robust with respect to ventilation flow rates and to the flow patterns observed, which were tested by varying the effective vent areas and the ratio of the vent areas.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950362024000018CO₂ sensorsUK schoolsIndoor air qualityComputational fluid dynamicsNatural ventilation |
| spellingShingle | Carolanne V.M. Vouriot Maarten van Reeuwijk Henry C. Burridge Robustness of point measurements of carbon dioxide concentration for the inference of ventilation rates in a wintertime classroom Indoor Environments CO₂ sensors UK schools Indoor air quality Computational fluid dynamics Natural ventilation |
| title | Robustness of point measurements of carbon dioxide concentration for the inference of ventilation rates in a wintertime classroom |
| title_full | Robustness of point measurements of carbon dioxide concentration for the inference of ventilation rates in a wintertime classroom |
| title_fullStr | Robustness of point measurements of carbon dioxide concentration for the inference of ventilation rates in a wintertime classroom |
| title_full_unstemmed | Robustness of point measurements of carbon dioxide concentration for the inference of ventilation rates in a wintertime classroom |
| title_short | Robustness of point measurements of carbon dioxide concentration for the inference of ventilation rates in a wintertime classroom |
| title_sort | robustness of point measurements of carbon dioxide concentration for the inference of ventilation rates in a wintertime classroom |
| topic | CO₂ sensors UK schools Indoor air quality Computational fluid dynamics Natural ventilation |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2950362024000018 |
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