GO AQS (Global Open Air Quality Standards) is a newly launched, open-source initiative aiming to establish a universal standard for indoor air quality (IAQ). The project seeks to address inconsistencies, accessibility issues, and communication challenges surrounding current IAQ standards and indexes.

Key Ideas and Facts:

Problem: The current IAQ landscape is fragmented and confusing, with varying units of measurement, inconsistent standards, and a multitude of air quality indexes that make it difficult for individuals, integrators, and the general public to understand and address air quality concerns.

Solution: GO AQS proposes a transparent, science-backed, and universally applicable IAQ standard that will simplify communication, facilitate comparisons, and ultimately improve indoor air quality globally.

Two Tiers: Recognising the need for a phased implementation, GO AQS will offer two tiers:

• Starter Tier: Focuses on PM_2.5 and carbon dioxide (CO₂), serving as an initial step towards raising IAQ awareness.
• Ultimate Tier: Incorporates additional pollutants such as PCN_0.3, PCN_0.5, ozone (O₃), formaldehyde (HCOH), and carbon monoxide (CO), and possibly more providing a comprehensive evaluation of IAQ.

Target Limits and Index: GO AQS will establish specific target limits for each pollutant, presented in a user-friendly traffic light system (good, moderate, bad) with corresponding letter scores and health advice.

Focus on Particle Counting: GO AQS emphasizes the importance of measuring particle number concentration, especially for smaller particles (PCN_0.3 and PCN_0.5), which pose a greater health risk due to their ability to penetrate deeper into the body.

Challenges with TVOCs: Due to the limitations of current sensor technology and the lack of industry consensus on specific VOCs measured, GO AQS will initially focus on formaldehyde, with plans to address broader TVOC measurement in the future.

Community Driven: GO AQS is an open project that encourages participation from all stakeholders, including industry professionals, academics, and experts.

Collaboration with Green Building Certificates: GO AQS aims to become the standardized language for IAQ within green building certification programs like LEED, WELL, and RESET. However, we have not brought the project to their attention yet as we want to finalise it first.

Important Quotes:

Project Origin: “GO AQS started out of our frustration that nothing is moving in the IAQ industry regarding establishing some standards to help people do their job and also to inform people about the dangers of air pollution in the indoor spaces.”

Particle Counting vs. Mass: “We know already from the scientific literature that those sub-micron particles can penetrate deeper to the human body and yet when we try to represent those particles in a mass by providing PM values then we also only see 3% of those particles. So that is the reason we believe it is time to switch into counting the particles rather than weighting them in mass for the smaller sizes. PM_2.5 is still important”

Next Steps:

1. Community Building: Recruiting experts, industry professionals, and academics to participate in the project.
2. Initial Voting Period: Gathering feedback on key decisions, such as the inclusion of additional pollutants and the applicability of the standard to various environments.
3. Development and Finalisation: Establishing final target limits, index calculations, and other details of the standard.
4. Integration with Green Building Certificates: Working with leading green building certification programs to adopt GO AQS as a recognised IAQ standard.

Overall, GO AQS represents a promising step towards a future where IAQ is consistently measured, understood, and improved for the benefit of everyone.

Webinar PDF

Webinar Recording 28 min