Bipolar Ionization Did Not Reduce Airborne Bacteria in a Lecture Hall.

Autor:	Kormos DA; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States., Shetty NJ; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States.; Department of Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas 66045, United States., Gall ET; Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon 97201, United States., Prussin AJ 2nd; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States., Pruden A; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States., Marr LC; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061, United States.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	ACS ES&T air [ACS EST Air] 2024 Oct 28; Vol. 1 (12), pp. 1696-1705. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Oct 28 (Print Publication: 2024).
DOI:	10.1021/acsestair.4c00235
Abstrakt:	Ionization treatment of indoor air has attracted attention for its potential to inactivate airborne pathogens and reduce disease transmission, yet its real-world effectiveness remains unverified. We evaluated the impact of an in-duct, bipolar ionization system on airborne particles, including culturable bacteria, in a lecture hall. The ionizer was off with variable fan speed for 1 week, on with variable fan speed for a second week, and on with high and constant fan speed for a third week. We measured ion concentrations and aerosol particle concentrations, and we collected bioaerosol samples for analysis of 16S rRNA gene copies representing total bacteria and colony forming units (CFUs) on Tryptic Soy Agar representing culturable bacteria. There were no significant differences in positive, in-room ion concentrations between any weeks; however, negative, in-room ion concentrations were significantly lower when the ionizer was on with constant fan speed. To account for day-to-day variability in total bacteria concentrations, related to occupancy and other factors, we examined the ratio of CFUs to 16S rRNA gene copies (CFU gc -1 ) and found no significant differences whether the ionizer was on or off. This result indicates that the ionizer was not effective at reducing levels of culturable airborne bacteria in this study. Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest. (© 2024 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
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