Advanced Airflow Distribution System for Reducing Airborne Virus Exposure in Hospital Rooms

Hospitals have been identified as high-risk places for the transmission of nosocomial infections. The aim of the study was to find an optimal air distribution model for the hospital rooms to reduce the virus exposure. Air distribution patterns in a two-bed hospital room with thermal manikins were examined through a Computational Fluid Dynamics study. The respiratory process of the manikins was mimicked using a tracer gas (CO2) which was responsible for the cross-infection. Multi-phase transient analysis was performed for the evaluation of designed models. Total Residence Time (TRT) and Personal Exposure (PE) were the two evaluation factors established to reflect the air distribution of models, respectively. Two-stage analysis identified an optimized air distribution strategy with two exhausts and two airflow inlets on the room ceiling to reduce the exposure of the virus. Results showed that TRT was decreased by 64% and PE was increased by 45.7% by changing the positions of the outlets.