• HOME
  • NEWS
    • BIOENGINEERING
    • SCIENCE NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • FORUM
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
Tuesday, July 5, 2022
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
    • BIOENGINEERING
    • SCIENCE NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • FORUM
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
  • HOME
  • NEWS
    • BIOENGINEERING
    • SCIENCE NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • FORUM
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Health

Desktop air curtain system prevents spread of COVID-19 in hospital settings

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
May 17, 2022
in Health
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

WASHINGTON, May 17, 2022 – In efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19, miniaturizing air curtains for hospital wards, labs, and other health care settings is gaining traction as a viable solution to inadequate face masks or when social distancing is not a realistic option.

DACS tested on patient at Nagoya University Hospital

Credit: Junki Mikami (FUIGO)

WASHINGTON, May 17, 2022 – In efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19, miniaturizing air curtains for hospital wards, labs, and other health care settings is gaining traction as a viable solution to inadequate face masks or when social distancing is not a realistic option.

In AIP Advances, published by AIP Publishing, researchers in Japan developed a desktop air curtain system (DACS) that blocks all incoming aerosol particles.

“We envisage this system will be effective as an indirect barrier for use in blood-testing labs, hospital wards, and other situations where sufficient physical distance cannot be maintained, such as at a reception counter,” co-author Kotaro Takamure said.

An air curtain, or air door, is a fan-powered ventilation system that creates an air seal over an entryway. Hospitals use them to prevent ambulance fumes and other contaminants from reaching the inside of an emergency room.

One challenge in developing smaller air curtains is fully blocking emitted aerosol particles over time because it is difficult to maintain the air wall over a long distance. As a result, the devices gradually lose air-discharge intensity, creating a turbulent flow that allows infected aerosol particles to escape into the surrounding environment.

The DACS contains a discharge and suction port to help address this problem. A generator at the top of the DACS produces the airflow, which is guided to the suction port at the bottom of the device. This prevents airflow dispersion, thus leading to the collection of all the aerosol particles at the suction port. A high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter can be installed inside the suction port for air purification.

The researchers are developing an accompanying virus inactivation system equipped with ultraviolet light that connects to the suction port. After the air is sanitized with the UV light, it is recirculated to maintain airflow of the air curtain and air pressure in the room.

The researchers tested their device by using an air compressor connected to a mannequin to simulate breathing. Dioctyl sebacate, a widely used solvent that spreads easily, was added to the airflow to create aerosol particles. Particle image velocimetry and high-speed cameras were used to determine the DACS’s blocking effect.

The aerosol particles approaching the DACS abruptly bent toward the suction port, signifying that air curtain flow fully blocked all incoming aerosol particles.

When the researchers placed the mannequin’s arm through the DACS to imitate a blood-collection scenario, they found the airflow above the arm was disrupted. However, the aerosol blocking performance remained unaffected.

The DACS was tested on patients during blood collection at Nagoya University Hospital. The researchers are looking at lowering the suction port, so the arm can be placed below the heart for proper blood collection.

###

The article “Blocking effect of desktop air curtain on aerosols in exhaled breath” is authored by Kotaro Takamure, Yasuaki Sakamoto, Tetsuya Yagi, Yasumasa Iwatani, Hiroshi Amano, and Tomomi Uchiyama. The article will appear in AIP Advances on May 17, 2022 (DOI: 10.1063/5.0086659). After that date, it can be accessed at https://aip.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/5.0086659.

ABOUT THE JOURNAL

AIP Advances is an open access journal publishing in all areas of physical sciences—applied, theoretical, and experimental. The inclusive scope of AIP Advances makes it an essential outlet for scientists across the physical sciences. See https://aip.scitation.org/journal/adv.

###



Journal

AIP Advances

DOI

10.1063/5.0086659

Article Title

Blocking effect of desktop air curtain on aerosols in exhaled breath

Article Publication Date

17-May-2022

Share12Tweet7Share2ShareShareShare1

Related Posts

Chemical structure of Pep19

Peptide with anti-obesity action is successfully tested in animal trial

July 5, 2022
Infographic of Mosaic-8

Wellcome Leap announces breakthrough in funded project at Caltech – points to new all-in-one vaccine for SARS-like betacoronaviruses – Phase I clinical trials initiated by CEPI

July 5, 2022

USC researcher leads effort to improve research on diet and dementia

July 4, 2022

Researchers propose a new live-attenuated influenza A vaccine approach

July 4, 2022

POPULAR NEWS

  • Pacific whiting

    Oregon State University research finds evidence to suggest Pacific whiting skin has anti-aging properties that prevent wrinkles

    37 shares
    Share 15 Tweet 9
  • Telescopic contact lenses

    39 shares
    Share 16 Tweet 10
  • Emerging Omicron subvariants BA.2.12.1, BA.4 and BA.5 are inhibited less efficiently by antibodies

    37 shares
    Share 15 Tweet 9
  • The pair of Orcas deterring Great White Sharks – by ripping open their torsos for livers

    37 shares
    Share 15 Tweet 9

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Tags

VaccinesWeather/StormsUrbanizationVaccineVirologyUniversity of WashingtonVehiclesUrogenital SystemVirusZoology/Veterinary ScienceWeaponryViolence/Criminals

Recent Posts

  • Neuroscientists to study effects of marijuana use during adolescence with $2M NIH grant
  • Scientists discover cancer trigger that could spur targeted drug therapies
  • UTSA professor to use NSF grant to improve understanding between man and machines
  • BSC develops the first air quality model created in Spain to join the European Union’s Copernicus program
  • Contact Us

© 2019 Bioengineer.org - Biotechnology news by Science Magazine - Scienmag.

No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

© 2019 Bioengineer.org - Biotechnology news by Science Magazine - Scienmag.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
Posting....