Effects of Indoor Environmental Quality on the Occupants of Islamic University-Gaza, Palestine

Abstract

Indoor environmental quality is one of the most important factors that affect the residents of the indoor locations, and IUG is considered as a leader in the pursuit of providing satisfaction for workers. This study aims to identify the impact of the elements of indoor environmental quality on the employees of the Islamic University and to compare these elements with the international recognized standards. This study was conducted on 22 rooms within IUG, where employees spend more 7 hours in their offices during three seasons: winter, spring (the second semester) and summer, in two stages, the first stage: field work, by measuring the concentration of CO2, CO, HR, T, PM and noise by using the relevant devices, the second stage: designing a questionnaire for exploring the extent of the impact of these factors on the employees working indoors. The study shows the following results: 80% of IUG employees are satisfied with thermal comfort and the concentration of CO is appropriate and less than the standards (9ppm). CO2 is high in the rooms that rely on centralized air conditioning, and there is a negative relationship between the ventilation ratio and the concentration of CO2. There is a significant statistical difference between CO2 measurements according to seasons, also, the PM where its concentration is higher than the USAEPA Standards. Moreover, the student's movement on carpeted floors increases the ratio of the concentration of particulate matter in the closed rooms. The noise level is high in the university rooms especially in the summer (66.35 dB), and there is a significant statistical difference between noise measurements according to level floors only, also, openning windows and fans increase the proportion of sound level inside rooms in summer. 50% of IUG employees feel with general comfort in their work places, but 46% need some changes in their office to feel comfort. So, 96% of IUG employees were feeling with general comfort inside their offices. The university employees felt the symptoms of health issues related to carbon dioxide concentration and the particles matter. The study concluded that the environmental indoor quality parameters are varied inside the rooms of the university and the environmental awareness of these factors and their effect need to be enforced.