Airborne transmission of virus-laden droplets in an aircraft cabin

Abstract

This study investigates the airborne transmission of virus-laden droplets generated by a cough of patients in an aircraft cabin to reveal the infection risk of taking an airplane. The influence of the ventilation system on flow field of the cabin was analyzed to reveal its effects on the airborne transmission of virus-laden droplets. Meanwhile, human body heat was also considered in the simulations. The results show that hot plume due to human body heat has significant impact on the upward movement of virus-laden droplets. The virus-laden droplets expelled by a cough can be transmitted to the region with two to three rows away from the generator. Particularly, the transverse motion present in the early stage of the droplet transmission results in a high infection risk to the passengers in the same row with the patient. This work gives insight into the understanding of the airborne transmission of virus-laden droplets in the entire passenger cabin.