eatuuu migiecuiat sieves, OF suka Bou UF Cateye YaLUAUULL ate Use > 21.4 Material Balance Models for Indoor Air Quality ‘The indoor concentrations of air contaminants can be predicted by simple mathematical models; the key variables are emission rates and ventilation rates. In some buildings, the airflow is very simple, and we can assume the whole building acts like a single, well-mixed room, For other situations, we might have to model the building as many such rooms connected in series and parallel. For the simple model of one well-mixed room (a box with air entering and leaving), the material balance equation called a box model, and is represented as follo =Q0, +8-Q6,-kGV 1.1) where V = volume of the room, m? indoor concentration of the pollutant, g/m? C, = concentration of the pollutant in the outside air, je/m? Q= ventilation rate, m®/hr ‘S = source emission rate inside the room, jig/hr k removal reaction rate constant (here assumed to be first order), hr? Equation (21.1) ean be rewritten as 1.2) ‘The quantity (Q/V + kis the char this system, and ig giv racteristic time or time constant for n the symbol +. The general solution to EaVdei QC) +8-Q0, - GV (21.1) dt where V = volume of the room, m> 3 C; = indoor concentration of the pollutant, g/m’ se at 3 C, = concentration of the pollutant in the outside air, g/m’ Q= ventilation rate, m? /hr 'S = source emission rate inside the room, ig/hr k= removal reaction rate constant (here assumed to be first order), hr! Equation (21.1) can be rewritten as (8 lo-2o.8 21.2 ii +(2+4}o-2 Qty (21.2) ‘The quantity (Q/V + h)-1is the characteristic time or time constant for this system, and is given the symbol x. The general solution to Eq. (21.2) is: ENO 8 8 4 -{o-(2 +9) footy ee(2 0 +3) 13a) where Cy = initial concentration in the room at time zero Equation (21.88) can he rearranged and written as Eq. (21.3b), which may be more convenient for may be r obtaining a numerical solution, especially ifthe initial concentration (Cy) in the room is zero, RMT INLSection 21.4 Material Balance Models for Indoor Air Quality 707 ( 8) url en \ %o *)+Cge* (21,3b) [Cot |e") +Co Equation (21.8) can be simplified as follows: 14) C= Opee(L-0") + Gye Bq. (21.1), or just the first term where C; 5, = steady-state solution of in Bq, (21:3b), The quantity Q/V is called the air exchange rate (air exchange was mentioned carlier—this quantifles it), and has units of hr, but can be thought of as the number of room volumes of air exchanged per hour, It is a common measure of the degree of ventilation for a build ‘The steady-state solution also can be written as (So,+8) Ga eORSY (21.5) ¢ 16) to, air changes per hour ing Eq. (2.6), it can be seen that, as the air oxchange the indoor concentration approaches the outdeor enn sions rate or the destruct} ration, regardless of the souree708 Chapter Twenty-One Indoor Air Quality and Control exchange applies to buildings without central air conditioning, which includes many homes in northern climates, Of course, during the win- ter, these homeowners close the windows, so air exchange is greatly reduced, Table 21.6 presents some guidelines for estimating air infil- tration rates into homes with windows elosed. Table 21.6 Air Infiltration Rates into Homes with Windows Closed Layout of room Air exchange rate, ach No windows or exterior doors 05 Windows or exterior door on one wall 10 Window's or exterior doors on two walls 15 Windows or exterior doors on three Walls 20 Adapted trom de Nevers, 2000 >> rrr rrr Example 21.1 A posh country club has just had its sitting room paneled with new hardwood plywood paneling. The paneling emits formaldehyde at an ‘emission rate of 20,000 ng/m® day; and 900 fof wall space is covered Pormaldchyde decays to carbon dioxide with a first-order rate con. stant of 0.40 per hour. ‘The room measures 26 ft long by 20 ft wide bp 10 ft high. The average ventilation rate is 1.5 air changes per howe and the outdoor eoncentration is zero, . a. Assuming that the elub ope 8 the tls after the nanelins ie int ‘oom to members immedi->yrrrrrry Example 21.1 A posh country club has just had its sitting room paneled with new hardwood plywood paneling. The paneling emits formaldehyde at an emission rate of 20,000 ng/m®-day; and 900 £2 of wall space is covered. Formaldehyde decays to carbon dioxide with a first-order rate con- tant of 0.40 per hour. The room measures 25 f long by 20 ft wide by 10 f high. The average ventilation rate is 1.5 air changes per hour, ‘and the outdoor concentration is zero, 4. Assuming that the club opens the room to members immedi ately after the paneling is installed, what is the maximum con. centration of formaldehyde to which people are exposed? }, Assuming the initial HCHO concentration in the room is zero, how long does it take to reach 95% of the steady-state (maxi, mum) concentration? ©. What do you suggest be done? Solution (a) At steady state, Eq, (21.6) applies, namely: cn(*) ‘The emissions rate is: $=900 A? x day-m® 10.768 169.7 mgfhr of formaldehyde emissionsSection 21.4 Material Balance Models fi Indoor Air Quality 709 ‘The room volume is 5000 £29, and since C, is zero, then sv Sie ak _ 69.7 /5000 15 +04 = 0.00784 mete? x35.32 /m? =0.259 mg/m? This concentration converis to 0.21 ppm, more than enough to cause serious eye and respiratory system irritation to the club members (and they thought it was just ail those cigars they were smoking)) (b) To estimate the time to reach 95% of the steady-state coneentra- tion, we must know how the emission rate funetion behaves. A simple approach is to assume that tho emissions jump up immediately to a fixed level (a so-called stop increase), For Cy = C, = zero, Eq. (21.35) WY (ts expl-thl) =1/(1.5+0.4) = 0.526 he = 0.95, and solve for ¢ out exp(-1/ 045fixed level (a co-called step inerease). For Cy reduces to: zero, Eq, (21.3) Ge ort =exp[-ih)) =0,,, (1-oxp[-+e) Recall that t= 1/(L5+0.4) = 0.596 he Now, set C10; a,= 0.95, an solve for Gc Ces = 0.95 = 1~exp(-t/0.526) In(1-0.95) = -1/0.526 £= 0.526% 2.996 1=1.58 hours (©) The simpl t and porhaps best thing to do in this ease is to close off the room from the rest of the building and ventilate it with plenty of outside air until the new paneling *eures’—that is, until the emission rate of formaldehyde drops to a much lower love 4400 AAs pointed out by de Nevers (2000), an can be made to be more realistic indoor air quality model ind more complieated) than that escribed in Bq, (21.1), Consider the diagram in Figure 21.2 that sche tatically shows a building that experiencos infiltration, foreod venti: lation with treatment, and reciteulated air with separate trostnent at that airstream, It is assumed that the air within the building is com, pletely mixod. This model is still simplified compared to.a real build {in which there may be many separate rooms, with als flowing710 Chapter Twenty-One Indoor Air Quality and Control Infiltratedair | Makeupair — Recirculated air QC [a Qc Filter Y intakefan| [| Filter Q,G,(1- M2) Q,Co (1m) Building volume Pollution source Ss Pollution sink R Indoor concentration G, Outdoor concentration Co Exhaust fan ¥ a, G Yv Exfiltrated air Exhaust ait Figure 21.2 4 quality model. Schematic diaaram for indoor roodExhaust fan INNWea 2G 2G y Eeeated air Eshatst alr Figure 21.2 ‘Schematic diagram for indoor air quality model. (te do Nevers, 2000) simultaneously from some rooms and into others, and with different emission rates and different concentrations in m: ny of the rooms. ‘The material balance equation deseribing the processes shown in Figure = QC, +Q,C, (1m) +@,0; (1-ne, (Qr+Q, +05 )G+5-R an where all terms wero defined earlier or are identified in Figure 21.2. ‘Note that ny and ng in (21.7) are tho removal efficiencies ofthe two filters” shown in that figure. Furthermore, note that if the term ‘ii. ter” is used brondly, it ean refor not only toa particulate filter but also to.a carbon adsorber or catalytic oxidizer, so that a varicty of pollu in be removed by these “filtersExample 21.2 ‘A homeowner operates a 82S stove 45 minutes each day; the stove consumes 12.0 cubic feet of natural gas per hour while operating (each i tent of about 1000 kJ). The emission cubic foot of gas has an energy content ica haha factor for NOg for this kind of stove is 15 ne/kd. i The tchen infiltration rate of 4000 fi3/hr, and the ambient air has a concentra- tion of NO» of 40 g/m’, The kitchen has dimensions of 15 ft by 20 ft by 8 ft tall. The house jg not air conditioned, so there is no recireula- tion of air. The stove has a separate hood and yent fan with an exhaust rate of 500 ft°/hr (when the homeowner remembers to turn it on), and it can remove 80% of the emissions from the stove before those gases mix into the rest. of the air, Note that when the fan is on, the infiltration rate increases to a total of 4500 cubic feet/hour. The reaction rate of NOg is effectively zero, and there are no other sources or sinks of NO in the room. - Prepare a graph of the NOg concentration in the kitchen versus time. Follow the concentration for three hours starting from when the soe first turned on. Plot two lines—one with and one without the ent fan running (note—the fan only runs for the first 4 i Solve this problem using a spreadsheet. eee Solution i * First, calculate the NO» emission rate with the stove operating: 12.0 ft? gas y bh, 1000. br 60min 3 To start the numeric: ion, we sta al solution i To star v , we start by rewriti i balanee (Equation 21.7) as a finite difference anion se terms that do not apply: Tee ee J 15 “PHS — 3000 zg NO. /min AC, +8 QC; - QC;714 Chapter Twenty-One Indoor Air Qua ind Conteol mat. The approprats equations were presented in Chaplrs 4 and vy = 20001174 @AP ars) where ‘wy = rate of work (power) drawn by the fan motor, kW Q=sirflow rate, ef AP = pressure drop experianced by the air being moved, in. HO ‘n= fan efficiency typically between 0.65 and 0.8) tpt, 19) where C,, = annual cost of moving the air, $year time of operation oft handling, hour/year unit cost ofeleetriity, eWh ‘The cost C,, is only for moving the air; cooling (or heating) the often isa larger cost. The total cot for heating er ait conditioning 4 uilding depends quite strongly on the differenee between the cated (1) and inside (7: temperatures, radsant (sun) energy entering te building, intomal heat load, building invulation d the effcioney of ‘equipment. Architects and HVAC tontraccone by which to estimate heat load and air conde sts for systoms ranging in size from small home applica mereial buildings. Howover, from thermodynamic ovine he cooling or heat have short-cut moth tellsC,, = annual cost of moving the air, $/year t = time of operation of the air handling, hours/year C, = unit cost of electricity, $/<:Wh The cost C,, is only for moving the air; cooling (or heating) the air often is a larger cost. The total cost for heating or air conditioning a building depends quite strongly on the difference between the outside (P,) and inside (T;) temperatures, radiant (sun) energy entering the building, internal heat load, building insulation, and the efficiency of the cooling or heating equipment. Architects and HVAC contractors have short-cut methods by which to estimate heat load and air condi- tioning costs for systems ranging in size from small home applications to large commercial buildings. However, from thermodynamic princi- ples, we can estimate the incremental costs associated with heating or cooling just the make-up air. The cost for heating or cooling a stream of air is estimated from Eq. (21.10). _kC, pQlaz|c, ny Cire 2110) where ! Ciye = cost of heating or cooling the make-up air, $/min k= units conversion factor, 0.000293 kWh/Btu C,, =specific heat of air, Btu/Ib-°F 2 = density of air, Ib/ft® Q = airflow rate, cfm |A7|= absolute value of 7; ~ T,, °F C, = unit cost of electricity, $/kWh 1) = equipment efficiency, dimensionlessSection 21.5 Practical Solutions to TAQ Problems 715 If we (1) assume a typical efficiency for an electric air conditioner/heat pump, (2) assume average values for the Specific heat and density of air, and (3) convert minutes to hours, then Eq.(21.10) can be simplified to the following: Chie = 4.5(10)* Q|aT\C, vie) where Cj/e = cost of heating or cooling the make-up air, $/hr Keep in mind the approximate nature of Eq. (21.11). If we know exactly where the emissions are originating, and if we are smart about how and where to ventilate, localized venting within a building can be very effective. For example, to control cooking emis- sions in homes or commercial establishments, hoods and vent fans are installed over the stoves. In restaurants, it is essential to dpolate ine kitchen from the dining area. The vent fan exhausts only a small vol- i i le building, but that fan may cap- ume of air compared with the whol uilding, eleacraran dig ture and remove 90% or more of the emissions ere vee the electroplating industry, hoods and vents loested a sere ae plating tanks serve to keep the wyorkplase palatal ea ey dana poring through the basement ofa house, the basement could 7 i h be Soe eed, el then roadie continuously (see Figure 21.5).