Moshood Olawale Fadeyi, Singapore Institute of Technology

Understand the importance of source and sink rate to the concentration of indoor air pollutants

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Indoor Air Cartoon Journal, November 2019, Volume 2, #86

The concentration of indoor air pollutants is determined by the outcome of the competition between the source emission rate and the sink rate of air pollutants. The higher the sink rate over source emission rate, the lower will be the indoor air pollutant concentration, while the higher the source emission rate over sink rate, the higher will be the concentration of the indoor air pollutant.

Thus, the task of built environment professionals involved in the delivery of healthy and energy-efficient buildings is to ensure a higher sink rate over source emission rate of pollutants. They also need to know that a sink that is not well maintained can later be a source that potentially contributes to a high concentration of indoor air pollutants.

Evidence in the literature suggests that the design, construction, maintenance and operation of air change rate, filtration, and air purification, indoor materials, human presence and activities, environmental parameters – relative humidity, temperature, air movement, etc., and indoor air chemical reactions, can determine whether they become a source or sink of pollutants.

In fact, these factors influencing indoor air pollutant concentration could simultaneously serve as source and sink. Their effective impact on the concentration will depend on which of the two phenomena is dominant. How can designers, contractors, facility managers, and building users help in ensuring the sink effect of these factors is much higher than their source effect? Reflect on this question if you are interested in the delivery of or living in a healthy and energy-efficient indoor environment.

86. Source Sink Effect_86

Do you want to know more about this topic? Read Beko (2009), Kulmala et al. (1999), Lee et al. (2005), and Zhao et al. (2001) papers.

Published by Moshood Olawale Fadeyi, Singapore Institute of Technology

Dr. Moshood Olawale Fadeyi, an esteemed academic figure and a professor at the Singapore Institute of Technology, is globally renowned as a trailblazer in knowledge exchange. With a distinguished career spanning academia and industry, Dr. Fadeyi's expertise transcends conventional boundaries. Dr. Fadeyi is the Director and Principal Investigator of the Artistic Educational Research (AER) Lab at SIT. The lab aims to enhance critical and reflective thinking, intellectual pursuit, problem-solving capability, interdisciplinary engagement, and knowledge and understanding dissemination to promote learning and education in the domains of indoor air quality and health and value delivery in sustainable building engineering. The AER lab, founded and managed by Dr. Fadeyi, has trained several undergraduate and graduate students and industry professionals and benefited people in academia and the community. Research outputs from the lab have benefited people from over 100 countries. Dr. Fadeyi's scholarly pursuits also permeate his pedagogical philosophy. An innovator in artistic-educational research, Dr. Fadeyi's prolific research endeavours involve a systematic process of asking questions and providing answers to questions aimed at developing creative communication solutions for addressing practical and public education problems related to indoor air quality and health and value delivery in sustainable building engineering. His creative communication solutions have practical implications for enhancing educational, industry, and community practices. Dr. Fadeyi holds a multifaceted background encompassing architecture (BSc and M.Arch), building science (MSc), and engineering (PhD). His illustrious academic journey, boasting four university degrees, comes from prestigious institutions such as the National University of Singapore, the Technical University of Denmark, and the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Dr. Fadeyi is a member of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (UK), Chartered Institute of Building (UK), and American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-conditioning Engineers. Dr. Fadeyi's exceptional leadership and expertise are highly sought after by prominent companies and governmental entities, a testament to his unparalleled influence in the field. Dr. Fadeyi is a former National Taekwondo Champion in Singapore, exemplifying his commitment to excellence in diverse spheres.

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