Article
Construction & Building Technology
Fausto Arpino, Gino Cortellessa, Andrea Carlo D'Alicandro, Giorgio Grossi, Nicola Massarotti, Alessandro Mauro
Summary: The study investigates the distribution of airborne droplets (aerosol) emitted in a lecture room during a 2-hour speaking activity, as a function of different air supply rates from the HVAC system. The results show that increasing the air supply rate does not always effectively reduce aerosol concentration around the classroom seats.
BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Qiqi Luo, Cuiyun Ou, Jian Hang, Zhiwen Luo, Hongyu Yang, Xia Yang, Xuelin Zhang, Yuguo Li, Xiaodan Fan
Summary: This study investigates the influencing mechanism of crowded and poorly ventilated buses on infection risks of respiratory diseases. Experimental and CFD simulation results show that the initial droplet diameters, air change rates, and relative humidity have integrated effects on pathogen-laden droplet dispersion and infection risks. Large droplets are mainly affected by gravity, while the dispersion of 5 μm droplets is influenced by ventilation.
BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Seongjun Park, Richard Mistrick, William Sitzabee, Donghyun Rim
Summary: Upper-room ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) system has gained attention as an effective method to mitigate airborne virus infection in indoor environments. This study investigates the effects of ventilation strategy on airflow distributions and UVGI disinfection performance in an occupied classroom. The results show that enhancing indoor air circulation with a mixing fan improves UVGI disinfection performance, especially for cooling and all-air heating conditions. Designing UVGI systems considering ventilation strategy and occupancy conditions is important for occupied buildings with insufficient air mixing.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Mechanics
Alexandre Fabregat, Ferran Gisbert, Anton Vernet, Josep Anton Ferre, Ketan Mittal, Som Dutta, Jordi Pallares
Summary: Airborne particles play a significant role in the transmission of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, particularly when individuals talk, sing, cough, or sneeze. The dynamics of particles dispersed in the air evolve differently based on their sizes, with specific aerosol diameters showing increased residence time and horizontal range under typical ambient conditions.
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Murtaza Mohammadi, John Kaiser Calautit, John S. Owen, Christof Gromke, Yupeng Wu, Hao Liu
Summary: This study investigates the wind-driven transmission of pollutants between indoor rooms adjacent to a street canyon. It found that the ventilation efficiency and room location have an impact on the transmission. Increasing ventilation rate can reduce cross transmission between rooms, while rooms at the center of the canyon are more susceptible to contamination.
JOURNAL OF BUILDING ENGINEERING
(2023)
Article
Computer Science, Interdisciplinary Applications
Obula Reddy Kummitha, R. Vijay Kumar, V. Murali Krishna
Summary: The computational fluid dynamics analysis of a building plan focused on the predominant wind velocity for different wind directions. The study modeled the variation of flow properties, turbulence distribution, and flow characteristics using the Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes equations and various turbulence models, ultimately identifying optimal ventilation performance when the wind is coming from the west direction.
JOURNAL OF COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN AND ENGINEERING
(2021)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Mutaz Suleiman, Ahmed Elshaer, Muntasir Billah, Mohammed Bassuony
Summary: Modular construction methods are widely used in the civil engineering industry, and can address the limited hospital capacity due to COVID-19 by providing field hospitals. A study on the importance of ventilation systems in modular rooms for sustainable infection control found that increasing air changes per hour (ACH) and maintaining direct flow between inlet and outlet can improve aerosol removal efficiency. This research provides valuable insights for the placement of air conditioning units in modular rooms.
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Shengwei Zhu, Tong Lin, Jose Guillermo Cedeno Laurent, John D. Spengler, Jelena Srebric
Summary: This study investigates the aerosol infection risk of COVID-19 in airport transportation vehicles and identifies acceptable operational conditions. The results show that the infection risk in the near-field (NF) is an order of magnitude higher than in the far-field (FF). Wearing masks is identified as an important and effective risk reduction measure.
BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Seongjun Park, Richard Mistrick, Donghyun Rim
Summary: This study investigates the performance of a UVGI system in a classroom, showing that adjusting ventilation rate, UV radiating volume, and UV fluence rate can significantly improve the disinfection of airborne viruses.
SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND SOCIETY
(2022)
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Ihab Hasan Hatif, Haslinda Mohamed Kamar, Nazri Kamsah, Keng Yinn Wong
Summary: This study compares the effectiveness of different air distribution systems, including mixing ventilation (MV), displacement ventilation (DV), and stratum ventilation (SV), and evaluates specific influencing factors for each system. The results show that no single system consistently outperforms others, and the effectiveness depends on different conditions. DV and SV systems may have higher infection risks in certain situations, while MV systems are recommended for use when people's locations and relative positions are unclear.
JOURNAL OF BUILDING ENGINEERING
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Jooyeon Park, Kwang Suk Lee, Hyungmin Park
Summary: This study proposes an optimized ventilation design for hospitals to quickly remove pathogen-laden aerosols using numerical simulations. The key mechanism is to form a coherent airflow structure to surround the respiratory flow containing aerosol clusters.
JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Navid Goudarzi, Mohammadamin Sheikhshahrokhdehkordi, Javad Khalesi, Seyedehhamideh Hosseiniirani
Summary: Wind catchers serve as passive cooling systems to improve air quality, thermal comfort, and reduce energy consumption in the residential sector. This study numerically investigates the indoor flow structure and thermal comfort of a room integrated with a two-sided wind catcher, showing that lowering the room outlet elevation can increase the mass flow rate, and increasing the outlet area to wall ratio at a specific elevation can achieve desired temperature stratification and velocity field.
JOURNAL OF BUILDING ENGINEERING
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Andrea Carlo D'Alicandro, Alessandro Mauro
Summary: The study aims to analyze the effectiveness of three different ventilation systems in controlling UFP transport and deposition in operating rooms. The results show that both laminar airflow and turbulent mixing airflow systems can effectively remove UFPs and ensure a low particle deposition rate compared to the evacuation rate. In addition, the choice of instrument table position also affects the deposition of UFPs, CFUs, and contaminants, and the UFP concentration at the height of the surgical staff's head cannot be neglected for health-related risks.
ATMOSPHERIC ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Tom Lauriks, Riccardo Longo, Donja Baetens, Marco Derudi, Alessandro Parente, Aurelie Bellemans, Jeroen van Beeck, Siegfried Denys
Summary: Accurate prediction of urban air pollutant dispersion is crucial for safety, public health, and environment. This study in Antwerp, Belgium analyzes pollutants using computational fluid dynamics, models traffic emissions, and suggests local mitigation measures. Results show effective pollutant removal methods and improvements in atmospheric boundary layer dispersion modeling.
ATMOSPHERIC ENVIRONMENT
(2021)
Article
Construction & Building Technology
Gabriel Manetti de Menezes, Eliane Hayashi Suzuki, Fabio Cunha Lofrano, Fernando Akira Kurokawa
Summary: Indoor air quality is crucial for infection risk in healthcare facilities, especially in operating rooms. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are commonly used to evaluate air movement. However, many users oversimplify their models, leading to inaccurate results. This study analyzes the sensitivity of CFD simulations to mesh refinement, air circulation layout, furniture placement, and the presence of surgical staff in operating rooms. The results show significant differences in air velocity depending on mesh resolution and layout changes. Including furniture and surgical staff greatly affects air circulation patterns. Therefore, detailed CFD models should be used in early design stages to assess contamination risks.
JOURNAL OF BUILDING ENGINEERING
(2023)