Aerosol transmission in queuing and dining scenarios in canteens and the effectiveness of control measures

This study investigates the aerosol transmission in queuing and dining scenarios in canteens and explores the effectiveness of control measures. An improved Wells-Riley equation is adopted to calculate the infection risk. The dilution of exhaled aerosols is difficult in the crowded queuing scenario, where the replacement of queuing positions increases the cross-infection risk. The highest infection risk is 1.16% and 1.08% for the linear-queue and cross-queue condition, respectively. Shortening the queuing duration, increasing the separation distance, and wearing masks can considerably reduce the infection risk. In the dining scenario, the effect of increasing ACH is limited on reducing the local concentration. An exhaust vent installed close to the top of the partition can effectively remove the local high-concentration aerosols. Intermittent occupation of a seat can considerably reduce the transmission risk between the consecutive dinners taking that seat. These findings should contribute to improved control of infectious transmission in canteens.