THE EDUCATIONAL APPROACH TO INDUSTRIAL VENTILATION · Demanding curriculum, critical evaluation of:...
Transcript of THE EDUCATIONAL APPROACH TO INDUSTRIAL VENTILATION · Demanding curriculum, critical evaluation of:...
THE EDUCATIONAL APPROACH TO INDUSTRIAL VENTILATIONBy Crescente E. Figueroa, Ph.D., CIH
University of North AlabamaPhone: [email protected]
INTRODUCTION
Industrial ventilation is regularly included in the health and safety curriculaVersatile option for controlling airborne hazardsExpected graduation outcome of many IH academic programsKnowledge of this topic rated as “essential” in employers’ surveys
DRAWBACKS
Limited exchange of information on the educational approachNeed for exchange more relevant todayDemanding curriculum, critical evaluation of:
Objectives Means and methodsBreadth and depth coverageFormat of the offeringsEmerging areas of interest
STUDY APPROACH
Survey studyHow do we teach industrial ventilation?Identify differences and similarities among courses of industrial ventilationShed light on
Novel pedagogical meansPerceived emerging areas of needUse of non-traditional methodsNew teaching resources
E-submission and gathering of data
DATA SOURCE
Academic programs in occupational health, safety, environmental, or industrial hygieneBachelors or graduate level programs Limited to U.S. academic institutionsContinuing education offerings excluded
IDENTIFICATION OF PARTICIPANTS
ABET accredited programs in safety and industrial hygieneNIOSH grant recipients (ERCs and TPGs)ASSE listingsInternet search
Focus on programs with courses of controls including engineering or environmental controls and industrial ventilation
SUBMISSION
55 academic were identified and invited to participateSurvey and research method approved by the Institutional Review BoardMethod of collection allowed forwarding survey and instructionsTwo mail-outs, the second as a reminder
SURVEY DESIGN
Electronic type with questions of a mix formatSix sections
Course structure: 9 questionsBreath and depth: 9 questionsLaboratory and experimental: 2 questionsTeaching methods: 3 questionsCourse evaluation: 2 questionsEmerging areas: 4 questions
RESPONSE
30 programs responded (56% cooperation rate)Only one responder explicitly refused to participateApparent interest in survey results
COURSE STRUCTURE: Ventilation Objective
Health protection (100%)Safety controls (48.3%)IAQ assurance (41.4%)Comfort (37.9%)Compliance with regulations and standards (34.5%)Other
Material recoveryEngineering principles
COURSE STRUCTURE: Subject Hierarchy, an Exclusive Topic?
Stand Alone CourseComponent of a More General Subject Other
60%
30%10%
COURSE STRUCTURE: Outcome Performance Expectations
General PrinciplesComprehensive, Excluding DesignComprehensive, Including DesignOther
10%
26.7%
53.3%
General PrinciplesOperationsPerformance EvaluationDesign
COURSE STRUCTURE: Textbook
Web-SitesASHRAE Fund.Other
13%ACGIH & Burgess
17%ACGIH & McDermott
Combination3%AIHA Whitebook10Own Materials
7%Burton’s Vent. Workbook
40%ACGIH Vent. Manual
Single Source
COURSE STRUCTURE: Additional
A required component of the curriculum (82.8%) Mainly offered at the graduate level (63.3%)Frequency of course offering
Once a year (62.1%)Once every other year (20.7%)
Enrollment sizeAverage enrollment of less than 10 students (62.0%)
BREADTH AND DEPTH: Important Coverage Percent of
Responders
93%Hood Design(9)86%Design of ducts and fittings
90%Flow Rate Exterior HoodsVentilation96%Flow Rate Enclosing HoodsExhaust
100%97%
Hood Loss & PressureControl and Capture Velocity
Local 87%Dilution for HealthVent. (5)
100%Dilution Ventilation PrinciplesGen.
66%Properties of Air Contaminants
(5)93%Airflow and Fluid-dynamicsPrinciples
100%Pressure & Pressure LossBasic
Note: Important = Sufficient to Extensive Coverage
BREADTH AND DEPTH: Important Coverage
90%Balancing Methods 83%Multi-Branched90%Single-Branched Design (4)
Percent of Responders
60%Separation Principles
87%Principles of Operation90%Fan Laws
94%SelectionAir MovingDevices (4)
48%Design Characteristics
70%Pressure LossAir CleaningDevices (4)
60%Components
80%PurposeMake-upAir (3)
Note: Important = Sufficient to Extensive Coverage
BREADTH AND DEPTH: Limited Coverage
Percent of Responders
67%Fan maintenance Air Moving
70%
70%
Rating Principles
Cost
Air Cleaning
56%Supply sizing and distribution
Make-up Air59%System componentsVentilation60%HVAC useGeneral
Limited = None to Minimum Coverage
COURSE STRUCTURE: Experimental Portion
Part of Lecture ComponentSeparate OfferingNot Included
72.4%
17.2%10.3%
EXPERIMENTAL: Practices
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Freq
uenc
y (%
)
Ductvelocity
Static andvelocity
pressure
Facevelocity
Flow rate Pressureloss infittings
LEVsystems
EXPERIMENTAL: Resources
0102030405060708090
100
Freq
uenc
y (%
)
Pitot tu
bes
Manometers, fl
uid
Manometers,
aneroid
Anemometer
s, therm
al
Anemomete
rs, van
e
LEV mode
ls
IAQ monito
rs
Balometers
TEACHING METHODS: Delivery Mode
The most frequent option is traditional lecture (75%) or a combination of classroom and on-line delivery (17.9%)On-line or distant learning as an exclusive option is not available among respondersOther options include:
Seminars and reading assignmentsBlack board holdingsField work
TEACHING METHODS: Software Resources
Internet resources (76.2%)Specialized software (19%)Computer models (23.8%)
SpreadsheetsPersonal programs
Software listedHeaVentFan SelectorIVE AutoCalc CAD Design System
EVALUATION: Course Outcomes
0102030405060708090
100
Freq
uenc
y (%
)
Student Eva
luations
Surveys
of Graduate
s
Surveys
of Employe
rsTests
Demonstr
ation
EMERGING AREAS
One-third of responders recognize a need for addressing new areasEmerging areas
Control of nano-particles and biohazards including infectious agentsIAQ beyond outdoor air exchange ratesComputer modelingEnergy efficiency, especially in GVSEngineering diversity for a comprehensive hazard control approach
DISCUSSION
Many offerings have been subjected to change, from minor to extensiveAmong these changes
Merging into a more general subjectDeleting the design componentIncreasing emphasis on measurements activitiesDecreasing emphasis on specific technologies and expanding on multifaceted solutions
CONCLUSIONS
Courses containing industrial ventilation present more similarities than differencesThere is an incipient tendency towards deleting the design aspects as content topicExperimental and field activities represent an important part of the educational processCourses make use of a variety or resources including hardware and software