| Popis: |
Air ventilation systems in aircraft cabins are used to create a comfortable environment for travelling passengers. However, droplets exhaled by passengers with infectious diseases have a potential to affect and contaminate other passengers. The present study is the first part of several ongoing investigations at CEERS on indoor air quality and health aboard public transportation systems with the present investigations focused on a commercial regional aircraft. The investigation is on droplet (virus) transport and dispersion. Unsteady simulations of air movement within a commercial regional aircraft using a commercial Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software are presented. Unsteady release of particles in the size of cold viruses from passengers seated at different locations in the form of coughing are assumed. Results for duration of 120 seconds, which include contours of mean velocity, droplet velocity, temperature and droplet count, show that the ventilation system and characteristics of the airflow have significant effects on the virus/droplet dispersion. For this study, the air supply within the cabin was through axial ceiling exhaust slots running parallel with the aisle. The air recirculation rapidly disperses the droplets released to the front and rear rows, while preventing the dispersion of the droplets to the other side of the aisle. |
