The first part of the thesis deals with the issue of indoor climate in school buildings. The second part deals with the design of the heating system in the extension of the primary school, including the design of the source and the reconstruction of the source for the existing building in a variant solution. The last part of the thesis is devoted to experimental measurement of indoor air quality in elementary school.

Exposure to aerosol particles can cause health issues such as respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. Nevertheless, aerosol particle exposure with size-resolved information was seldom investigated in real-life European houses in the long term, especially for the ultrafine size range. In this work, indoor and outdoor measurements were conducted from December 2016 to March 2019. A standard of high-quality indoor and outdoor particle measurements in multi-homes was established for the first time. For more than 500 days, measurement data were collected in 40 German homes, including particle mass concentrations (PMC) of PM10, PM2.5, and PM1, particle number concentration (PNC) and size distribution, equivalent black carbon (eBC) mass concentration, CO2 concentration, and the residents’ activity log. With such novel dataset, representative patterns of diurnal and seasonal variation of particle concentration and size distribution as well as eBC mass concentration have been captured. In the warm season, diurnal cycles of indoor PMC and PNC showed weaker variation and less intense peaks (around the time of breakfast, lunch and dinner) than in the cold season, due to ventilation reducing the effect of indoor sources. To better understand the key dynamic processes of indoor particles (i.e. ventilation, building shell penetration, particle losses and emission), two commonly used quantitation methods, single parameter approach (SPA) and Indoor Aerosol Model approach (IAM), were compared and evaluated for the first time. Correction factors were derived to adjust the emission rates calculated from the simplified SPA approach, making emission rates derived from different levels of analysis mutually comparable. Results show that indoor source was the major contributor (56%) to indoor particle number exposure in investigated German residences. For the contribution of outdoors, penetration through the building envelope (26%) was higher than infiltration through open windows (15%). Burning candles and opening of window(s) led to seasonal differences in the contributions of indoor sources to residential exposure (70% and 40% in the cold and warm season, respectively). Indoor sources should be taken into consideration in future epidemiological studies and risk assessment of exposure to particle air pollution. / Aerosolpartikel können gesundheitliche Probleme wie Atemwegs- und Herz-Kreislauf-Erkrankungen verursachen. Jedoch wurde die Aerosolpartikelexposition, insbesondere für ultrafeine Partikel, in realen Europäischen Haushalten bisher nicht langfristig untersucht. Für diese Arbeit wurden Messungen im Innen- und Außenbereich von Dezember 2016 bis März 2019 durchgeführt. Erstmals wurde ein Standard für qualitativ hochwertige Innen- und Außenmessungen von Aerosolpartikeln in Wohnhäusern etabliert. An mehr als 500 Tagen wurden Messdaten verteilt über 40 deutsche Haushalte gesammelt, darunter die Partikelmassekonzentration (PMC) von PM10, PM2,5 und PM1, die Partikelanzahlkonzentration (PNC) und deren Größenverteilung, die Massekonzentration des äquivalenter schwarzer Kohlenstoff (eBC – equivalent Black Carbon) und ein Aktivitätsprotokoll der Bewohner. Mit diesem neuartigen Datensatz wurden repräsentative Muster der tages- und jahreszeitlichen Variation der Partikelkonzentration und Partikelgrößenverteilung sowie der eBC-Konzentration erstellt. Im Sommerhalbjahr zeigen sich schwächere Variationen und weniger intensive Spitzen (während der Frühstücks-, Mittags- und Abendessenszeit) in den Tageszyklen von PMC und PNC als im Winterhalbjahr. Dies ist auf die die Belüftung zurückzuführen, die den Effekt von Innenraumquellen reduziert. Zwei häufig verwendete Quantifizierungsmethoden der Schlüsselprozesse, der Single-Parameter-Ansatz (SPA) und der Indoor-Aerosol-Modellansatz (IAM), wurden zum ersten Mal quantitativ verglichen und bewertet. Es wurden Korrekturfaktoren abgeleitet, um die mit dem vereinfachten SPA-Ansatz berechneten Emissionsraten anzupassen, so dass die aus verschiedenen Analyseebenen abgeleiteten Emissionsraten miteinander vergleichbar sind. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass Quellen in Innenräumen den größten Beitrag (56%) zur Partikelanzahlexposition der Bewohner der untersuchten deutschen Haushalte leisten. Der Beitrag des Außenbereichs durch das Eindringen durch die Gebäudehülle (26%) ist höher als der durch offene Fenster (15%). Brennende Kerzen und das Öffnen von Fenster(n) hatten den größten Einfluss auf die saisonalen Unterschiede in der Partikelexposition. Innenraumquellen sollten in zukünftigen epidemiologischen Studien und bei der Risikobewertung Aerosolpartikelexposition berücksichtigt werden.

Exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) has critical health implications for developing fetuses and subsequently for infants and young children. Research has suggested that this ambient air pollutant can be found indoors in quantities that may be hazardous to human health. In low-income neighborhoods in New York City such as northern Manhattan and the South Bronx, where there are disproportionately high rates of asthma and asthma-related hospitalizations, high rates of indoor exposure to VOCs persist. Simultaneously, as mobile devices expand, applications on mobile devices may be used to educate parents of children who reside in these geographic regions about indoor VOC emission sources and subsequently how to reduce exposure.Therefore, this study sought to assess the role of mobile device applications in reducing household VOCs by assessing the feasibility of existing health applications on both Apple and Android OS mobile devices without the use of a household air monitoring unit. An online survey assessed awareness of VOCs and identified knowledge of both emission sources and reduction methods of household VOCs among a sample of (N = 57) parents/guardians residing in the Northern Manhattan and Southern Bronx regions with children under the age of 5. A series of focus groups were conducted among a subset of participants to assess the adaptability of a mobile application prototype that specifically targets the reduction of VOCs. Lastly, a preliminary mobile device application mockup was created with potential features. The key findings of this study included the following: (a) the author identified no existing mobile device applications that could be utilized as a method for VOC reduction without the use of a physical in-home air monitor; (b) while parents had some baseline awareness of VOCs, there were gaps within their knowledge of VOCs, particularly with emission sources; (c) the feasibility of this proposed application as a potential source of intervention for indoor VOC mitigation was apparent through parent willingness to explore its possible use, while providing ample recommendations for optimal mobile device application design; and (d) the exploratory mockup of the proposed mobile device application was generated with suggested features.

Business dynamics have generally been driven by the ability to create and provide value to customers. Value has evolved over time having meanings from merely price to something that actually creates a competitive advantage. Nevertheless, with the fast change in market conditions, it has become relevant to understand value, how it is originated, how customers perceive it and strategies to delineate it in order to fulfil customer needs in frontier technology environments. This thesis aims to research on how value is perceived in indoor air quality and heating, ventilating and air conditioning technologies, what customers look for and what the drivers are to originate value. The study is supported in empirical data obtained through four semi-structured interviews from customers with experience in these fields working in companies in Europe. After the research, the findings in terms of value entail several factors. Customers approach value by means of performance, however, at the same time this represents a constraint since it is important to balance performance over price. The value promise is also key to comply with customer expectations and current regulations in place. Moreover, due to the fact that locations are different and the type of buildings too, flexibility is another way to adopt value especially because these technologies are expected to have long lifespans and hence, it is important to consider changes in the future. The results also suggest that sustainable value can be found, improving people’s health, reducing environmental impacts and creating key partnerships corresponding to the triple bottom line of sustainability. Finally, some discussions are given in terms of barriers to create value such as the lack of incentives or low capital to invest, followed by a trend of energy saving systems to optimize and improve current conditions in this market.

Ce travail permet d'approfondir les connaissances sur l'exposition des voyageurs aux polluants de l'air dans les autobus via des mesures représentatives en fonction du matériel roulant (Agora Long, Agora Standard), le taux de renouvellement de l'air, de la qualité de l'air extérieur et des paramètres du trafic routier. Les expériences ont été réalisées en étudiant la répartition des polluants dans l'habitacle, un sujet peu abordé jusqu'à présent dans la littérature. Sont quantifiées certaines sources de pollution comme le relargage des nouveaux matériaux et le transfert des effluents du bus vers sa cabine (auto-pollution). Dans le cadre de cette démarche, une campagne inédite a été créée pour quantifier l'auto-pollution minimum et maximum pour ces deux types de bus. Dans des conditions réelles de circulation, les concentrations en polluants (NO2, PM2.5, concentration en nombre des particules entre 0,02-1µm) ont été plus élevées dans les habitacles des bus par rapport au fond urbain. De plus il a été constaté des concentrations en NO2 plus faibles à l'avant par rapport à l'arrière du bus, position du pot d'échappement et du moteur. Cette surexposition a été expliquée par une auto-pollution plus importante à l'arrière par rapport à l'avant (0,13% contre 0,05% dans des conditions défavorables). Enfin l'influence du relargage des matériaux, du trafic routier, des ouvertures des portes, de la vitesse du vent sur les concentrations des polluants dans les habitacles des bus a été démontrée / This study can increase knowledge about the travelers' exposure to air pollution inside buses through measures based representative of rolling stock (Agora Long, Agora Standard), the air change rate, air outdoor quality and traffic parameters. The experiments were performed by studying the distribution of pollutants in the cabin, a subject little discussed in the literature. Some sources of pollution such as the material emissions and the transfer of bus exhaust in the cabin are quantified (self-pollution). As part of this approach, an unprecedented campaign was conducted to quantify the maximum and minimum self-pollution for both types of bus. In real traffic conditions, the pollutant concentrations (NO2, PM2.5, particle number concentration between 0.02-1µm) are higher in the instrumented buses compared to outdoors. Moreover the lowest concentrations of NO2 have been measured in the front of the cabin compared to the rear, the localization of exhaust pipe and the engine. This overexposure was explained by a self-pollution higher in the rear of the cabin compared to the front (0.13% against 0.05% in adverse conditions). Finally the influence of the material emissions, traffic, door openings, the wind speed on the pollutant concentrations inside buses have been demonstrated

Le formaldéhyde (HCHO) est un polluant majeur de l’air intérieur. L’objectif de cette thèse est de réaliser les avancées scientifiques et technologiques nécessaires à l’obtention d’une méthode analytique basée sur un dispositif microfluidique de mesure du formaldéhyde dans l’air associant précision, sélectivité, rapidité d’analyse avec pour objectif majeur une autonomie suffisante sur de longues durées, typiquement un mois. Le principe de la méthode reposait initialement sur trois étapes clés, à savoir le piégeage du formaldéhyde gazeux en solution, la réaction du formaldéhyde avec un agent dérivatif, puis la détection du produit de dérivation par colorimétrie ou fluorimétrie. La méthode a finalement évolué vers seulement deux étapes distinctes grâce à l’utilisation d’un dispositif microfluidique innovant dans lequel le piégeage et la réaction ont lieu simultanément. L’étude des performances analytiques du dispositif a permis de valider la méthode développée pendant cette thèse. / Formaldehyde (HCHO) is a major pollutant in indoor air. The objective of this work is to realize the scientific and technological advances required to obtain an analytical method based on a microfluidic device to measure air formaldehyde combining precision, selectivity, analysis speed with for major objective a sufficient autonomy on a long time, typically one month. The principle of the method was initially based on three key steps, the gaseous formaldehyde uptake in solution, the formaldehyde derivatization reaction, then the detection of reaction product by colorimetry or fluorimetry. The method has finally advanced toward only two definite steps thanks to the use of an innovative microfluidic device in which uptake and reaction take place simultaneously. The study of analytical performances of the device allows to validate the method developedduring this work.

La sensibilisation du grand public à la pollution intérieure, les exigences croissantes des réglementations/recommandations le tout combiné à une nécessité de se démarquer de la concurrence, font de la limitation de la concentration des COV (COV : Composés Organiques Volatiles) dans l’air habitacle un enjeu crucial pour l’industrie automobile. En effet, à l’intérieur des véhicules, les COV sont principalement issus de l’air extérieur par combustion et évaporation du carburant mais, contrairement aux autres polluants, peuvent également avoir une origine intérieure à l’habitacle de par la désorption de substances chimiques utilisées lors de la fabrication des matériaux présents dans le véhicule. La capture des COV par adsorption sur charbons actifs ou zéolithes est à ce jour l’une des techniques d’abattement des COVs les plus efficaces et les moins coûteuses mais souffre de certaines limitations (sélectivité, régénération). L’objectif de cette thèse a consisté à étudier une alternative avec l’emploi d’une autre classe d’adsorbants ‘hybrides’ : les Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs). Formés de briques inorganiques connectées par des ligands organiques, ces matériaux poreux cristallisés présentent une grande diversité structurale ainsi qu’une composition chimique (métal, ligand) et une porosité (taille des pores, surface spécifique et volume poreux) extrêmement modulables. Cela vient de la possibilité quasi-infinie de faire varier à la fois le centre métallique et le ligand organique, ce que l’on ne retrouve pas à cette échelle chez les zéolithes et les charbons actifs. Le travail a consisté à évaluer les performances d’une série d’une dizaine de MOFs, possédant des propriétés chimiques (acidité, redox, hydrophiles/hydrophobes, …) et structurales (taille et forme des pores, réseaux rigides ou flexibles…) différenciées mais aussi de leur stabilité avérée (eau, température) et mise à l’échelle déjà établie. En plus des caractérisations usuelles (diffraction des rayons X, analyse thermogravimétrique, spectroscopie Infra-Rouge, porosimétrie N2 à 77K), la spectroscopie Infra-Rouge operando a été utilisée pour simuler le comportement de ces MOFs en présence de COV dans des conditions aussi proches que possible de la réalité. Les adsorbants les plus prometteurs ont ensuite été mis à l’échelle (50-100 g) et mis en forme (pastilles) puis testés en chambre de simulation environnementale. / The indoor air pollution awareness of general public and the increasing demands of regulations / recommendations, combined with a need to stand out from the competition, make limiting the concentration of VOCs (VOCs : volatile organic compounds ) in the air cockpit crucial for the automotive industry. For example, inside a vehicle, the VOCs are originated from the outside air by combustion and evaporation of fuel. However, unlike other pollutants, it may also have an inner origin from the desorption of existing chemical substances used in the manufacture of the vehicle. Thus, the capture of VOCs by adsorption is one of the challenging techniques today. In this context, activated carbon and zeolite based VOC abatement are effective and least expensive but suffers some limitations in stability, selectivity and regeneration. The aim of this thesis was to study an alternative class of 'hybrid' adsorbents i.e. Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs). These porous crystalline materials are built by the association of inorganic bricks connected by organic ligands. They have highly tunable structural diversity,chemical composition (metal:ligand) and porosity (pore size, surface area and pore volume). Moreover, they possess almost infinite ability to vary both the metal center and the organic ligand that is not found at this level in zeolites and activated carbons. The work was to evaluate the performance of a series of ten MOFs, having diverse architecture (size and shape of the pores, rigid or flexible networks ...), chemical properties (acidity, redox, hydrophilic / hydrophobic, ...) and stability (water temperature). In addition to the usual characterization (X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, infrared spectroscopy, porosimetry N2 at 77K), Infra-Red spectroscopy operando was performed to simulate the behavior of these MOFs in the presence of VOCs in conditions as close as possible to the reality. Furthermore, the most promising adsorbents were scaled up (50-100 g) and formatted/fabricated as pellets and tested for environmental simulation chamber.

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<p>Clean indoor air is a necessity, in the past opening a window or supplying outdoor air would suffice for removing indoor contaminated air. As humans live in more dense neighborhoods or urban areas, the need for energy efficient clean indoor air is important. As outdoor air pollution increases, a Biowall is a device to improve aesthetics and clean indoor air by pulling air through the root zone of plants in a loosely packed growth media. The Biowall is a sustainable supplement to a single use air filter. For this research a small Biowall was designed, fabricated, tested, and installed in the Children’s wing of a public library. The airflow simulation and watering for the Biowall was explored using Autodesk CFD to simulate the airflow through growth media and identify a hole pattern to distribute airflow evenly through the plant trays. Various watering line designs were also tested until the rectangular design proved to be more balanced at distributing the water evenly to the growth media. Finally, the air cleaning ability of the Biowall was tested using a Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR) test to quantify the cleaning rate. The Biowall provided 12 cfm of clean air, or about 2 cfm/sq ft of plant tray area.  </p>