Resource-efficient design of integrated personal exhaust ventilation and physical barriers for airborne transmission mitigation: A numerical and experimental evaluation

Abstract

This study investigates the performance of integrated personal exhaust ventilation and physical barriers in mitigating airborne transmission, addressing the critical need for effective infection control in indoor environments. Using computational fluid dynamics, we modeled aerosol dispersion in a test room and validated these results with experimental data. Experimental validation strengthened the computational findings by providing empirical evidence for system efficacy under varying airflow conditions. We examined various prevention levels, including no prevention measures, only physical barriers, and physical barriers integrated with personal exhaust ventilation. The designed system with a barrier height of 65 cm and a personal exhaust flow rate of 9 L/s per person demonstrated strong efficacy in mitigating airborne transmission. Further numerical analysis was conducted to evaluate the impact of critical parameters, including barrier height and exhaust flow rate, on the aerosol removal efficiency of the integrated system. Results indicate that reducing the barrier height to 45 cm and the exhaust flow rate to 6 L/s per person retains 95% of aerosol removal efficiency, offering the most cost-effective and sustainable design without compromising system's performance in limiting airborne transmission. These findings suggest that moderate adjustments can enhance system sustainability by enabling significant material and energy savings.