A hands-on experience in air pollution engineering courses: Implementing an effective indoor air pollution project

Abstract

Many undergraduate environmental engineering programs have courses on air pollution engineering; however, most of these courses do not include a hands-on learning experience. This shortcoming can influence ABET accreditation since the Environmental Engineering Program Criterion (Criterion 9) states that students must have an ability to conduct laboratory experiments, critically analyze, and interpret data in more than one major environmental engineering focus area, e.g., air, water, land, environmental health. Additionally, ABET outcome "b" states that graduates will develop the skills necessary to plan, design, execute, and critically interpret results from experiments. Students in the Environmental Engineering Program at the United States Military Academy have water-related laboratory experiences in lower-level courses, such as jar testing and biochemical oxygen demand experiments, similar to those found in many undergraduate environmental engineering programs at other universities. This work presents an indoor air pollution project that provides students an opportunity to develop and test a hypothesis related to an indoor air quality issue that interests them. The methods and materials required to implement this educational experience in environmental engineering programs to meet ABET accreditation requirements are also presented. Preparation for the project requires student teams (3-4 students) to develop a basic evaluation and sampling protocol to test a potential indoor air pollution problem. Students identify a pollutant of concern, either a gas (CO, Cl, VOC, Radon, O3, etc.) or particulate matter, and identify a feasible and safe location on campus for testing. Student teams are required to submit a 5-page technical report on their methods and findings and must compare the concentration of pollutants they detect to the Permissible Exposure Limits (PEL) for occupational exposure to indoor air pollutants established by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Students receive feedback on their protocols and results from their customer, their instructor, and the environmental engineering lab manager. © 2012 American Society for Engineering Education.