by Brianna Crandall — March 14, 2012—With its proposed update to the LEED Green Building Rating System, LEED 2012, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has taken an important step to strengthen its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program’s indoor environmental quality (IEQ) requirements regarding volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from products and materials, according to a news release from Air Quality Sciences (AQS). The EQ category features a structural reordering of credits, including a new credit for Low-Emitting Interiors. The goal of this new credit is to reduce concentrations of chemical contaminants that can damage air quality, human health, productivity, and the environment.
To earn points for LEED 2012 EQ Credit for Low-Emitting Interiors, manufacturers must have their product tested in accordance with specified testing standards. Also, for the first time, the credit proposes explicit requirements for VOC emissions for adhesives, sealants, paints, and coatings. These changes underscore that VOC emissions are a recognized health threat and that neutralizing this threat cannot be achieved by limiting VOC content in product formulations, notes AQS. Direct testing of product emissions is the only surefire way to determine how much and which VOCs a product or material emits, asserts AQS.
Paint serves as an example of why the distinction between chemical emissions and chemical content is so important, says AQS. Conventional wisdom is that “No-VOC” or “VOC-Free” paint has little to no VOC emissions and thus would not contribute to the level of VOCs in indoor air. However, results of two comparative studies of VOC content/emissions, conducted by AQS, show that VOC emissions from a paint claiming “No VOC” is not uncommon.
To further understand the relationship between VOC content and emissions, AQS points to recent research on paint emissions, “Paint volatile organic compound emissions and volatile organic compound content comparison study” (Mason and Ceragioli 2011). Emissions tests were conducted on 26 paint products with reported VOC content levels from 0 g/L to 150 g/L, all conforming to the LEED New Construction (NC) low-emitting credit criteria for paints and coatings.
The results demonstrated that 27% of the samples had formaldehyde emissions levels above the proposed LEED limit for dry product emissions, and two of the products had ethylene glycol emissions at or above the limit. Overall, the results of the AQS studies confirmed that there is minimal correlation between measured VOC emissions levels and the stated maximum VOC content level.
Products claim to be low-VOC or no-VOC because they comply with various state and federal VOC content regulations, but AQS says that these content-based VOC regulations were developed to help reduce outdoor VOC emissions that contribute to the formation of ground ozone and smog, not to reduce indoor VOC emissions or chemical exposure to building occupants. Since not all VOCs contribute to ozone and smog formation, “low-VOC” or “no-VOC” products may still contain certain VOCs that can off gas into the indoor environment.
Many building certification programs and eco-labels have been developed around the world to address national markets as well as local environmental issues. And while several of these programs have criteria for VOC and hazardous chemical content limits, only a few explicitly deal with chemical emissions from building materials and products used indoors, notes AQS; even fewer focus solely on chemical emissions. AQS points to the USGBC’s recommendation of direct testing for product emissions is a commendable initiative towards promoting healthier built environments.
Air Quality Sciences, now UL Air Quality Sciences (UL AQS), has developed product emissions testing protocols and standards for more than 20 years, maintaining strong relationships with key certification programs such as USGBC and LEED, GREENGUARD, UL Environment, Green Seal, and EcoLogo. AQS assists product manufacturers in creating low-emitting products and navigating the complexities of product certification to meet the stringent requirements of these and other programs, both in the United States and worldwide.
