Like many metropolitan areas, Salt Lake City is no stranger to air quality issues caused by industrial and vehicle emissions. The city’s bowl-like topography can trap stagnant air causing inversions during the long winter months, not to mention the impact on air quality during wildfire season.
But what happens to the indoor air when the air quality outside is poor? Understanding that pollution poses multiple risks to human health and the environment, clean indoor air is an essential maintenance component of the University of Utah’s facilities infrastructure.
To better understand what happens to the indoor air when the air quality outside is poor, the U Facilities’ SEED2SOIL program awarded research grants for two projects to establish an on-campus baseline for indoor and outdoor air quality.
The study “Networked Indoor Air Quality Measurements at the University of Utah,” led by Dr. Kerry Kelly and Dr. Darrah Sleeth, is monitoring 20 buildings of varied ages and locations across campus. They have placed AirU sensors to collect data between August 2022 and January 2024 to measure temperatures, relative humidity, PM2.5 and CO2 concentrations. The data collected by sensors will monitor daily and seasonal fluctuations in indoor air quality, indicating whether poor outdoor air conditions affect indoor air quality under different heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems (HVAC) for each monitored building. A cloud-based, real-time data dashboard assists with quickly identifying concerns and evaluating changes made to a building’s HVAC system.
The project, “Quantifying the Impact of Outdoor Air Pollution on Indoor Air Quality at University of Utah Buildings,” led by Dr. Daniel Mendoza and Dr. Tabitha Benney, directly measures indoor air quality with research-grade (more sensitive) sensors. The project aims to understand the effects of Salt Lake City’s inversions, commuting, and other factors of outside air pollution that might affect indoor air quality. The team is analyzing pollution infiltration patterns between August 2022 and October 2023 to evaluate outdoor weather events such as inversions, peak commuting periods, and wildfires. Air is being monitored at the William Browning Building, Frederick Albert Sutton Building, and the Health Sciences Education Building using two instrument packages containing PM2.5, ozone, and black carbon sensors. For each selected site, one sensor package has been installed outside the study building and one inside the building.
With the final data, ventilation and filtration strategies for buildings across campus will be reviewed to improve the health of our occupants while maximizing energy efficiency. Potential strategies include smart technologies or automation tools that can trigger enhanced ventilation when thresholds are met, improvements for building winterization, tips for augmented building filtration during an outdoor air quality event, and increased venting before and after commuting hours for facilities located close to roadways to avoid bringing heavily polluted air inside. This research will provide an operational framework for air quality improvement campus-wide and within our broader urban community for years to come.
41 Responses
Hello to everyone, because I really like reading this blog’s posts to be updated on a daily basis.
nice post On our website, we will include a link to this post in particular.
You’re so awesome! I don’t believe I have read a single thing like that before. So great to find someone with some original thoughts on this topic. Really.. thank you for starting this up. This website is something that is needed on the internet, someone with a little originality!
I truly appreciate your technique of writing a blog. I added it to my bookmark site list and will
Normally I do not read article on blogs however I would like to say that this writeup very forced me to try and do so Your writing style has been amazed me Thanks quite great post
Hey there You have done a fantastic job I will certainly digg it and personally recommend to my friends Im confident theyll be benefited from this site
Thank you so much!
Thank you so much!
Thanks for thr great article!
Thanks for thr great article!
Thanks for thr great article!
It is very comforting to see that others are suffering from the same problem as you, wow!
Thanks for thr great article!
It is very comforting to see that others are suffering from the same problem as you, wow!
It is very comforting to see that others are suffering from the same problem as you, wow!
Thanks for thr great article!
Thank you so much!
Thanks for thr great article!
Thank you so much!
Thank you so much!
Simply desire to say your article is as surprising. The clarity for your submit is simply excellent and i could assume you’re knowledgeable on this subject. Fine with your permission let me to snatch your RSS feed to stay updated with drawing close post. Thanks one million and please continue the rewarding work.
It is very comforting to see that others are suffering from the same problem as you, wow!
Hey! This is kind of off topic but I need some help from an established blog. Is it hard to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal but I can figure things out pretty quick. I’m thinking about setting up my own but I’m not sure where to start. Do you have any points or suggestions? Cheers
It is very comforting to see that others are suffering from the same problem as you, wow!
Thank you so much!
Hey! Do you know if they make any plugins to safeguard against hackers? I’m kinda paranoid about losing everything I’ve worked hard on. Any recommendations?
Nice blog here! Also your web site loads up fast! What web host are you using? Can I get your affiliate link to your host? I wish my website loaded up as quickly as yours lol
Audio started playing as soon as I opened this webpage, so frustrating!
Almanya medyum haluk hoca sizlere 40 yıldır medyumluk hizmeti veriyor, Medyum haluk hocamızın hazırladığı çalışmalar ise bağlama büyüsü ve aşık etme büyüsü , Konularında en iyi sonuç ve kısa sürede yüzde yüz için bizleri tercih ediniz. İletişim: +49 157 59456087
Hey! I know this is kinda off topic nevertheless I’d figured I’d ask. Would you be interested in exchanging links or maybe guest writing a blog post or vice-versa? My website addresses a lot of the same topics as yours and I feel we could greatly benefit from each other. If you are interested feel free to send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you! Great blog by the way!
Valuable info. Fortunate me I found your website accidentally, and I’m stunned why this coincidence didn’t happened earlier! I bookmarked it.
I know this if off topic but I’m looking into starting my own weblog and was curious what all is needed to get set up? I’m assuming having a blog like yours would cost a pretty penny? I’m not very web savvy so I’m not 100 certain. Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
I’m curious to find out what blog platform you have been utilizing? I’m experiencing some minor security problems with my latest website and I’d like to find something more safeguarded. Do you have any recommendations?
Hey There. I found your blog the use of msn. This is an extremely well written article. I will be sure to bookmark it and return to learn extra of your useful information. Thank you for the post. I?ll certainly comeback.
I will also like to express that most individuals who find themselves with out health insurance are usually students, self-employed and those that are without a job. More than half of those uninsured are under the age of Thirty-five. They do not really feel they are looking for health insurance since they are young in addition to healthy. Their own income is typically spent on houses, food, and also entertainment. Some people that do represent the working class either full or not professional are not presented insurance via their jobs so they proceed without as a result of rising cost of health insurance in the us. Thanks for the suggestions you write about through this site.
You need to take part in a contest for among the best blogs on the web. I’ll recommend this web site!
My spouse and I absolutely love your blog and find nearly all of your post’s to be exactly what I’m looking for. Would you offer guest writers to write content for you personally? I wouldn’t mind composing a post or elaborating on most of the subjects you write with regards to here. Again, awesome web log!
Thanks for your post. I also think that laptop computers have become more and more popular lately, and now are usually the only kind of computer used in a household. The reason being at the same time that they’re becoming more and more economical, their processing power keeps growing to the point where they’re as potent as personal computers coming from just a few years ago.
Thank you so much!
One thing I’d like to say is that car insurance cancellations is a hated experience so if you’re doing the proper things as a driver you’ll not get one. Some individuals do have the notice that they have been officially dumped by their insurance company they have to struggle to get extra insurance after having a cancellation. Low cost auto insurance rates tend to be hard to get after the cancellation. Understanding the main reasons for auto insurance cancellation can help drivers prevent completely losing in one of the most critical privileges accessible. Thanks for the tips shared via your blog.
Thanks for thr great article!