Question

Several authors have commented on the generally dismal indoor environment conditions that

existed 100 or more years ago with open coal and wood fires and combustion light sources.

Today’s environmental control systems seem to generate far less polluting and are more

occupant-friendly, yet poor indoor air quality complaints are commonplace. Why do we seem to

have more problems with IAQ today than in 1900? Explain.

Answer 1

In 1900s even when people used woodfires and coal , there used to be forests and trees to take the carbon dioxide and reduce pollution in air and used to release plenty of oxygen. Hence the quality of indoor air quality used to be healthy and pleasant. In the current environment where urbanisation is rapid and trees are cut down , no matter how less polluting methods we use, the circulation of carbon di oxide and oxygen is not there . Also the depletion of ozone layer due to pollution caused the quality of air to reduce further and hence there are more problems with IAQ today than in 1900.