Persily, A.
and de, L.
(2016),
Carbon Dioxide Generation Rates for Building Occupants, Indoor Air, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=920870 (Accessed May 8, 2026)
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Carbon Dioxide Generation Rates for Building Occupants
Published
Author(s)
, Lilian de Jonge
Abstract
Indoor carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations have been used for decades to characterize building ventilation and indoor air quality. Many of these applications require estimates of CO2 generation rates from the building occupants, which are currently based on approaches and data that are several decades old. However, CO2 generation rates derive from well-established concepts within the fields of human metabolism and exercise physiology, which relate these rates to body size and composition, sex, diet and levels of physical activity. This paper reviews how CO2 generation rate have been estimated in the past and how they can more reliably be characterized based on considerations of human metabolism. Based on this information, the estimation of CO2 generation rates from building occupants is described, including the values and the variability that might exist in a building population. The implications of this information for ventilation and IAQ standards and field studies are also described.Citation
Indoor Air
Pub Type
Journals
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Keywords
Carbon dioxide, human metabolism, indoor air quality, standards, ventilation
Citation
Issues
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Created April 18, 2016, Updated August 22, 2017