Evidence for the impact on health of interventions that improve the indoor
environment can take years or even decades to be identified and actionable. However, health
impact modelling can be used to estimate changes in rates of morbidity and mortality due to
changes to the environment, which can be simulated using physics-based models. In the past,
these tools have not been used in combination to assist in real-time building controls. The work
described here builds upon previous work that proposed a smart control framework that
combined portable air purifiers and automatic window control systems to reduce indoor PM2.5
concentrations in residences whilst maintaining thermal comfort. The modelled changes can
inform health models for better estimations of the impacts to population health due to the
implementation of controls that use both thermal conditions and contaminant concentrations\ud
as control targets. The IAQ modelling, which uses EnergyPlus to simulate both indoor
contaminants and thermal conditions, includes different ambient pollution levels, and,
importantly, different occupant behaviour profiles (e.g., cigarette smoking). The approach to
quantitative health impact assessment in this work is through life-table models that predict
survival patterns based on age-specific mortality figures and hazard ratios. The simulation
results showed that dual control of portable home air purifiers and window openings has the
potential to not only maintain thermal comfort but also achieve effective PM2.5 removal even in
cases of high indoor sources which, consequently, can lead to considerable health benefits at a
relatively low energy cost
