Exposure Control Indoors with Wearable Personal Exhaust Unit

Zhecho Dimitrov Bolashikov, Maria I. Barova, Arsen Krikor Melikov

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    Abstract

    A wearable personalized ventilation (PV) unit to reduce the risk from airborne disease contamination is reported. The PV unit consists of a nozzle, installed on a headset, which is used to locally exhaust the exhaled air before it mixes with the surroundings. Experiments at 22 °C were performed in a full-scale test room furnished as a double bed hospital room. A breathing thermal manikin with a realistic free convection flow around the body and breathing cycle was used to mimic a sick doctor. A second thermal manikin and a heated dummy were used to resemble two lying patients. The air exhaled by the doctor was mixed with tracer gas (R134 A) to mimic airborne pathogens. The PV nozzle was positioned frontally 0.02 m from the mouth of the doctor exhausting 0.25 L/s air. The performance of the PV in combination with mixing background air distribution at 3 ACH was compared with the case of only mixing background air distribution at 3, 6 and 12 ACH. The use of the device showed a great potential in reducing the concentration of exhaled air in the room to the level measured under mixing ventilation alone at 12 ACH. The high potential to capture exhaled air, makes the wearable PV applicable as an efficient engineering control method that can reduce the spread of pathogen laden air from sick occupants in densely occupied spaces, i.e. cinemas, public transportation, office buildings etc.
    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationProceedings of 11th REHVA World Congress and the 8th International Conference on Indoor Air Quality, Ventilation and Energy Conservation in Buildings
    Number of pages10
    Publication date2013
    Article numberPaper ID: 377
    Publication statusPublished - 2013
    EventClima 2013: 11th REHVA World Congress & 8th International Conference on IAQVEC - Prague Congress Centre, Prague, Czech Republic
    Duration: 16 Jun 201319 Jun 2013
    Conference number: 11
    http://www.clima2013.org/

    Conference

    ConferenceClima 2013
    Number11
    LocationPrague Congress Centre
    Country/TerritoryCzech Republic
    CityPrague
    Period16/06/201319/06/2013
    Internet address

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