The Effects of Building Materials on Building Biology and the Resultant Air Quality

Abstract

The basic need of a human being is to lead a healthy life. Since people spend 90% of their life indoors, the main function of a building should be providing a healthy environment for its occupants. A building should meet its occupants’ biological, psychological, social needs through its quality indicators related to the outdoor-indoor environmental characteristics. Buildings, which are designed, constructed and presented in a health supporting condition, may lose their healthiness over time. The reason for this is that the quality indicators’ may change over time (aging of the building and the user) and circumstances (function, environmental characteristics, characteristics of the user). Building Biology can be defined as the study of the relationships between people and their constructed environment. It is a science that leads to natural healthy ecological buildings that exist in harmony with the planetary environment. The main aspects of building biology are interior climate, heat and moisture comfort, air quality, radioactivity, electro-climatic pollution, acoustic violence and natural lighting conditions and its effects.

According to the studies, 65% of our buildings are polluted, sometimes as much as five to ten times higher than outdoor city pollution. The harmful gases, volatile organic compounds, particulate matter, lead, asbestos and dust have been receiving considerable interest in indoor air field studies because of their high emission rates from materials used in indoor environments. They can cause diseases such as cancer, asthma, allergic reactions, pulmonary fibrosis and many more.

In this study; the definition of building biology, types and sources of indoor air pollutants and the impact of materials on indoor environment and human health are discussed in detail.

Keywords

• Building Biology,Building Materials,Human Health,Indoor Air Quality

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