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Indoor and Built Environment, Vol. 15, No. 4, 347-356 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/1420326X06067353

Use of CFD Modelling to Optimise the Design of Upper-room UVGI Disinfection Systems for Ventilated Rooms

C. J. Noakes

Pathogen Control Engineering Research Group, School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK, C.J.Noakes{at}leeds.ac.uk

P. A. Sleigh

Pathogen Control Engineering Research Group, School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK

L. A. Fletcher

Pathogen Control Engineering Research Group, School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK

C. B. Beggs

School of Engineering, Design and Technology, University of Bradford, Bradford BD7 1DP, UK

The installation of upper-room ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) devices in ventilated rooms has the potential to reduce transmission of infections by an airborne route. However, the performance of such devices is dependant on several factors including the location of the lamp and the ventilation airflow in the room. This study uses a CFD model to evaluate the performance of UVGI devices by considering the cumulative UV-C dose received by the bulk room air in a ventilated room. By evaluating the UV dose rather than the resulting micro-organism inactivation the methodology can be used to optimise UVGI systems at the design stage, particularly when the source location of bioaerosol contaminants is not known. The study investigates the relationships between the lamp location, lamp power, ventilation system and room heating in a small, ventilated room. The results show that with ventilation air supplied at low level and extracted at high level the UVGI system performs better than with the air supplied at high level and extracted close to the floor. In addition the results show the presence of a heater in the room is unlikely to have a detrimental effect on performance and may promote mixing to increase the extent of disinfection.

Key Words: CFD • Ultraviolet disinfection • Airborne infection • Ventilation • Modelling

References

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  • Memarzadeh F: Assessing the efficacy of ultraviolet germicidal irradiation and ventilation in removing Mycobacterium tuberculosis. NIH, Division of Engineering Services, Bethesda Md 2000.
  • Alani A, Barton IE, Seymour MJ, Wrobel LC: Application of Lagrangian particle transport model to tuberculosis TB bacteria UV dosing in a ventilated isolation room : Intl J Environ Hlth Res 2001;11: 219-228 .[CrossRef]
  • Noakes CJ, Fletcher LA, Beggs CB, Sleigh PA, Kerr KG: Development of a numerical model to simulate the biological inactivation of airborne micro-organisms in the presence of ultra-violet light : J Aerosol Sci 2004;35: 489-507 .
  • Noakes CJ, Beggs CB, Sleigh PA: Modelling the performance of upper room ultraviolet germicidal irradiation devices in ventilated rooms: comparison of analytical and CFD methods : Indoor Built Environ 2004; 13: 477-488 .[CrossRef]
  • Wright NG, Hargreaves DM: The use of CFD in the evaluation of UV treatment systems : J Hydroinformatics 2001;3: 59-70 .
  • Riley RL, Knight M, Middlebrook G: Ultra-violet susceptibility of BCG and virulent tubercle bacilli : Am Rev Resp Dis 1976;113: 413-418 .[ISI][Medline] [Order article via Infotrieve]
  • Beggs CB, Kerr KG, Donnelly JK, Sleigh PA, Mara DD, Cairns G: An engineering approach to the control of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and other airborne pathogens: a UK hospital based pilot study : Trans Roy Soc Tropical Med Hlth 2000;94: 141-146 .

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This Article
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Right arrow Articles by Noakes, C. J.
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What's this?