Skip to content Accessibility statement
Department of Environment and Geography
HomeDepartment of Environment and GeographyResearchINTERIORS Facility

The INTERIORS facility at the University of York

Everybody is aware that we are exposed to air pollution outdoors, such as from vehicle emissions, but they are less aware that we are also exposed to air pollutants when indoors.

Indoor emissions originate from numerous sources, such as building, decorative and furnishing materials, and occupant activities such as cooking and cleaning. Outdoor air pollutants can also enter buildings through doors, windows and cracks in the building. Given that in developed countries like the UK, we spend most of our time indoors (about two thirds in our homes), most of our exposure to air pollution happens indoors. Despite this fact, most of the research, funding and regulation focuses on outdoor air pollution. 

Here at the University of York, we aim to redress that balance through an innovative, new indoor air testing facility called INTERIORS (INTERdisciplinary Facility for IndOoR Air Quality ReSearch). This globally unique facility consists of two houses either side of an integrated air sampling laboratory. One house is built to typical UK building standards and the other to Passivhaus standards. The Passivhaus is a proxy for Net Zero housing of the future, more energy efficient and with a much lower ventilation rate than the standard build house. Both houses are naturally ventilated, connected to mains water and electricity, and furnished as per typical residences. A custom-built gas sampling system will enable the research team to sample air from any room in either of the houses, but also from outdoors.

Objectives

INTERIORS will provide a realistic testing facility for indoor air quality in typical and energy-efficient housing as we carry out a series of activities like cooking and cleaning, as per typical occupants. The scientific objectives of INTERIORS are to allow:

  • Unprecedented characterisation of IAQ under background and high concentration activities such as cleaning, and cooking
  • Quantification of the emissions from commonly-used building and consumer products (e.g. carpets, air-fresheners) in a realistic setting over time
  • An understanding of the efficacy, lifetime and potential secondary impacts of a range of consumer and material products, including ‘green’ materials used indoors.
  • Characterisation of long-term emissions indoors, such as from materials as they age.
  • Identification of solutions to improve IAQ. Such solutions could include improved building and product design and could be used by policy makers, building designers and managers, and consumer, furnishing and building product manufacturers, and provide benefits to a wide range of people.