IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bpj/johsem/v3y2006i2p22n2.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Effectiveness of Expedient Sheltering in Place in Commercial Buildings

Author

Listed:
  • Jetter James

    (U.S. EPA)

  • Proffitt David

    (Arcadis G&M, Inc.)

Abstract

This study evaluated the effectiveness of expedient sheltering in place in commercial buildings for protection against airborne hazards, as described in U.S. Government guidance to the public. Expedient sheltering measures (plastic sheeting and duct tape) were applied to four different rooms inside commercial buildings. In two rooms, additional tests were performed with ceilings covered, and one room was tested with persons entering and exiting the shelter. Measured air exchange rates for the shelter rooms and literature values for air exchange rates for large buildings were used to determine protection factors for various scenarios. Protection factors were compared for leaky, typical, and tight buildings and shelters under various occupancy times and plume pass-over times for hazardous airborne contaminants. Protection factors ranged from 1.0 to 3960, depending on the conditions. Results reinforced the importance of timing for effective sheltering in place. Sheltering in place can be most beneficial if people enter shelters before the arrival of a hazardous plume and people exit shelters as soon as the plume passes over. However, sheltering in place can be detrimental if people enter or exit shelters too late. CO2 and O2 concentrations were calculated for a tight shelter with maximum recommended occupancy.

Suggested Citation

  • Jetter James & Proffitt David, 2006. "Effectiveness of Expedient Sheltering in Place in Commercial Buildings," Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, De Gruyter, vol. 3(2), pages 1-22, June.
  • Handle: RePEc:bpj:johsem:v:3:y:2006:i:2:p:22:n:2
    DOI: 10.2202/1547-7355.1173
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.2202/1547-7355.1173
    Download Restriction: For access to full text, subscription to the journal or payment for the individual article is required.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.2202/1547-7355.1173?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bpj:johsem:v:3:y:2006:i:2:p:22:n:2. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Peter Golla (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.degruyter.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.