1.2     METHODOLOGY

As mentioned above, the research will be conducted by a few methods.

One of the methods is by analyzing the results obtained from ASHRAE 62.1 application. The ASHRAE 62.1 application, available for iPhone and iPad users at the iTunes website; is created by ASHRAE, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers which aims to “serve humanity and promote a sustainable world through advancements in technology”. This application is convenient for civilians like us to perform calculations on the minimum rate of ventilation required in a space based on Standard 62.1. There are also other ASHRAE standards for different situations and Standard 62.1 is specially created as a guideline for the ventilation for acceptable indoor air quality. ASHRAE 62.1 application is functions roughly like the “62MZCalc.xls” Microsoft Excel spreadsheet that comes with each copy of the standard. 62MZCalc.xls is the table which displays the facts and figures on the ventilation of a particular space. The key-in information that are essential for the application to calculate the whether the ventilation is sufficient is the type of space, the space’s total area in square meter, and the maximum number of persons that will be in the space.

Here’s an example how the application works; with reference from Screen Shot 1 and Screen Shot 2 below.

First we need to give a name for the zone we want to calculate. For example: “Living Room”. Then we need to select the space type, which is defaulted. Next, the total area of the space in square meters and the maximum number of people that will be in that space (zone population) are keyed-in. After the said information were keyed-in, the screen immediately shows whether the space is labelled as “critical zone” or not.  

With reference from the proposed results (critical zone or not), we will then proceed to analyze the design of the interior space tested to reconfirm the results from this application, with is also another research method.

  

               

   Screen Shot 1: The essential information that is               Screen Shot 2: The defaulted space types which

   needed to be keyed-in and below shows whether           once chosen, also shows the defaulted figures to

   it is a critical zone or not.                                                       allow the final calculations to be made.

Besides those two methods used, case studies will be referred to determine the common contaminants (biological contaminants, chemical contaminants or physical contaminants) present in homes.