Page 13 - Green Builder May-June 2020 Issue

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Green Building NEWS

The Latest on Sustainability and Renewable Energy
Sensor Measures

CO to Adjust HVAC
2
By applying a human-centric metric,
cooling and heating can be optimized for

the comfort of occupants.

URDUE UNIVERSITY RESEARCHERS have developed a sensor
to help control and cut down on energy consumption through
heating and ventilation systems, particularly those used in
P large office and hospitality industry buildings. The lower- CREDIT: CLINTON STEEDS/FLICKR
cost, lower energy-using carbon dioxide sensor could change the way
energy heats, cools and ventilates large buildings and eventually homes,
according to lead researcher Jeff Rhoads, a professor of mechanical
engineering in Purdue’s College of Engineering. Name your poison. On a typical day in many major cities, air quality is
“Climate control and proper ventilation are especially important because pretty bad. But two reports from medical researchers say the air inside
most people spend considerably more time indoors than outside,” Rhoads homes can be a lot worse.
Study: COVID-19 Isn’t
says. “Climate control and ventilation are also huge sources of energy
consumption in the United States and around the world.”
the Only Risk to People

Staying at Home

New medical report cites major air quality

issues, courtesy of gas stoves.
EOPLE KEPT INDOORS BY COVID-19-induced stay-at-home orders
may have another airborne problem. According to a report by the
CREDIT: PURDUE UNIVERSITY P Mothers Out Front, and the Sierra Club
Rocky Mountain Institute, Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR),
Gas, stoves are likely exposing tens of millions of people to levels of indoor

The report, Health Effects From Gas Stove Pollution, notes that indoor air
Breath count. Purdue University’s new heating and ventilation air pollution that would be illegal under outdoor air quality standards.
system-based CO sensor cuts indoor energy use by detecting how can be two to five times more polluted than the air outside. Homes with gas
2
many people are breathing in a room, and therefore, how much stoves have nitrogen dioxide concentrations 50 percent to 400 percent higher
energy the room might need. than homes with electric stoves. The findings mirror those in a report from
the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, which found that 90 percent of all
The technology identifies when carbon dioxide is released into the California homes experienced levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) pollution that
air by a person, or people entering and breathing inside that space. The exceed state and national air quality standards within an hour of cooking on
sensor detects the CO level so that heating and ventilation systems
2 gas stoves.
can control the climate and air turnover in spaces that are occupied, “As health professionals, we are worried by this risk,” states Barbara Gottlieb,
instead of using energy to control rooms that are empty. environment and health director for PSR. “With so many of us seeking shelter
Rhoads adds that the Purdue sensor also helps address privacy in our homes from the COVID-19 crisis, it’s urgent that we understand the
concerns about using camera technology for detecting when someone threat and learn about protective measures we can take.”
enters and leaves a room. The researchers are also working to integrate
the sensor with other Internet of Things building technology. The respective reports are available at www.psr.org and www.ucla.edu.

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