Abstract
Aerosol transmission is now well-established as a route in the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Factors influencing the transport of virus-laden particles in an elevator cabin are investigated computationally and include human respiratory events, locations of the infected person(s), and the ventilation system (ventilation mode, ventilation capacity, and vent schemes). “Breath,” “cough,” and “sneeze” are defined quantitatively by the fluid jet velocities and particle sizes. For natural ventilation, most particles exhaled by sneezing and coughing tend to deposit on surfaces quickly, but aerosol generated by breathing will remain suspended in the air longer. For forced ventilation, motions of particles under different ventilation capacities are compared. Larger particles otherwise deposited readily on solid surfaces may be slowed down by airflow. Air currents also accelerate the motions of smaller particles, facilitating the subsequent deposition of micrometer or sub-micrometer particles. Locations of the infected person(s) lead to different spreading scenarios due to the distinctive motions of the particles generated by the various respiratory events. Sneeze particles will likely contaminate the person in front of the infected passenger only. Cough particles will increase the risk of all the people around the injector. Breath particles tend to spread throughout the confined environment. An optimized vent scheme is introduced and can reduce particles suspended in the air by up to 80% as compared with commonly used schemes. The purification function of this vent model is robust to various positions of the infected passenger.
Highlights
The ongoing pandemic arising from the SARS-CoV-2 virus has resulted in large mortality/morbidity rates,[1] enormous economic losses,[2] and severe disruption in modern lifestyle.[3,4] The main agents responsible for spreading the SARS-CoV-2 virus are typically virusladen aerosols formed and exhaled through the mouth or nose of the infected person(s) by breathing, talking, coughing, or sneezing.[5,6] The diameter of aerosols generated by human expiratory events varies from sub-micrometer to hundreds of micrometers
Factors influencing the transport of virus-laden particles in an elevator cabin are investigated computationally and include human respiratory events, locations of the infected person(s), and the ventilation system
Sneeze particles will likely contaminate the person in front of the infected passenger only
Summary
The ongoing pandemic arising from the SARS-CoV-2 virus has resulted in large mortality/morbidity rates,[1] enormous economic losses,[2] and severe disruption in modern lifestyle.[3,4] The main agents responsible for spreading the SARS-CoV-2 virus are typically virusladen aerosols formed and exhaled through the mouth or nose of the infected person(s) by breathing, talking, coughing, or sneezing.[5,6] The diameter of aerosols generated by human expiratory events varies from sub-micrometer to hundreds of micrometers. The last route, i.e., airborne transmission, has been identified as the dominant mechanism in the spreading of the coronavirus.[11]
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