Indoor Environments

Radiation and Indoor Environments Laboratory

The Center for Indoor Environments (CIE) promotes human health, comfort, and productivity through managing air quality in indoor environments. Its goal is to ensure safe, healthy, and productive indoor environments.

Indoor Air

CIE specializes in assessing indoor environments and building systems using EPA's Building Assessment Evaluation (BASE) protocols. CIE's scientists work with state-of-the-art equipment and mobile technology to monitor indoor environments and to promote air quality improvements.

For example, in partnership with private industry, CIE retrofits schools with energy efficient ventilation upgrades in demonstration projects. CIE also provides technical support to several EPA national programs that study baseline indoor air quality of large buildings and schools.

Students and teachers measuring indoor air quality

Collecting bioaerosol samples in a classroom

CIE members work with teachers and students to foster healthy learning environments by promoting proper school classroom ventilation. Students help with carbon dioxide and indoor temperature measurements to assess classroom air quality.

CIE detects and measures the following indoor air quality factors:

Indoor Pollutants	Comfort Factors
Radon	Temperature
Carbon Monoxide	Relative Humidity
Formaldehyde	Ventilation Rates
Bioaerosols	Carbon Dioxide
Respirable Particulates	Sound and Light
Volatile Organic Compounds

Radon

Performing radon gas calibration

CIE works with EPA's National Radon Program to educate and help protect the public from radon, a naturally occurring radioactive gas. CIE maintains an internationally recognized radon laboratory that provides technical support and quality assurance to EPA Regions, states, cooperative partners, and the radon industry. CIE's radon laboratory is also a technical support laboratory for the International Atomic Energy Agency's Radon Metrology Program.

The CIE Radon Laboratory operates three state-of-the-art radon calibration chambers capable of providing static environmental conditions or variable "real world" conditions. In addition, CIE has a charcoal canister and electretion chamber counting laboratory for radon measurement. CIE's Radon Laboratory maintains traceability to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Computer Support

Programming computer-controlled environmental chambers

CIE also includes a team of computer specialists who provide software support in database design, programming, and management. CIE computer scientists also support RIENL's field and laboratory expertise in assessing radioactivity in the environment.

Contact Us

To learn more about the Center for Inoor Environments, you can contact us through radiation.questions@epa.gov or by phone (702) 784-8200