Document Type : Regular Article
Author
Chemical Engineering Department, Hamedan University of Technology, P. O. Box: 65155, Hamedan, Iran
Abstract
The size and lifetime of evaporating sneeze droplets in the indoor environment were studied experimentally and theoretically. The effects of indoor temperature T∞ and indoor humidity RH∞ on evaporating droplets with the initial diameters of 4.9, 8.1, 17.2, and 29.7 μm were investigated. The size distribution and mean size of droplets were obtained by a laser particle sizer. The experimental data showed that the possibility of aerosolized droplets increased from 25.5 to 36.1 % by increasing T∞ from 18 to 30 °C and decreased from 36.1 to 13.6 % by increasing RH∞ from 30 to 60 %. A one-dimensional droplet evaporation model was used to estimate the lifetime of the droplet. A critical RH∞ of 40 % was found; above it, the lifetime of the droplet exponentially increases. The effect of the initial diameter of droplets was higher than that of RH∞ and also the impact of RH∞ was higher than that of T∞ on the lifetime of the aerosolized droplet nuclei. A significant effect of environmental conditions on the lifetime of the droplet was found over the range of 26 °C ≤ T∞ ≤ 30 °C and RH∞ ≤ 40 %, while the effect decreased in the range of 18 °C ≤ T∞ ≤ 22 °C and RH∞ > 40 %, where a minimal shrinkage of droplets took place because of the hygroscopic growth of droplets. The results of this study do not imply that the COVID-19 virus will be deactivated at the end of the lifetime of the droplet, but it represents that controlling the indoor environment is important for droplets to carry the virus.
Keywords
- Theoretical Evaporation Model
- Indoor Environment
- Sneeze Droplets
- Size Distribution
- Droplet Lifetime
- COVID-19 Virus
Main Subjects
- World Health Organization (WHO), “Modes of transmission of virus causing COVID-19: Implications for IPC precaution recommendations, scientific brief”, Geneva, (29 March 2020c). (https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/331616/).
- Noorimotlagh, , Jaafarzadeh, N. T., Martínez, S. S. and Mirzaee, S. A., “A systematic review of possible airborne transmission of the COVID-19 virus (SARS-CoV-2) in the indoor air environment”, Environ. Res., 193 (1), 110612 (2021).
- Huang, C., Wang, Y., Li, X., Ren, L., Zhao, J., Hu, Y., Zhang, L., Fan, G., Xu, J. and Gu, X., “Clinical features of patients infected with 2019 novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China”, Lancet, 395 (10223), 497 (2020).
- Huang, N., Pérez, P., Kato, T., Mikami, Y., Okuda, K. I., Gilmore, R. C. and Domínguez, C., “The COVID-GRAM tool for patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in Europe”, JAMA Internal Medicine, 1 (1), 892 (2021).
- Chan, J. F. W., “A familial cluster of pneumonia associated with the 2019 novel coronavirus indicating person-to-person transmission: A study of a family cluster”, Lancet, 395 (10223), 514 (2020).
- Liu, J., Liao, X., Qian, S., Yuan, J., Wang, F., Liu, Y., Wang, Z., Wang, F. S., Liu, L. and Zhang, Z., “Community transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2, Shenzhen, China”, Infect. Dis., 26 (1), 1320 (2020).
- Balachandar, , Zaleski, S., Soldati, A., Ahmadi, G. and Bourouiba, L., “Host-to-host airborne transmission as a multiphase flow problem for science-based social distance guidelines”, Int. J. Multiph. Flow, 132 (1), 103439 (2020).
- Liu, K., Allahyari, M., Salinas, J. S., Zgheib, N. and Balachandar, S., “Peering inside a cough or sneeze to explain enhanced airborne transmission under dry weather”, Rep., 11 (1), 9826 (2021).
- Mikszewski, A., Stabile, L., Buonanno, G. and Morawska, L., “Increased close proximity airborne transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant”, Total Environ., 816 (1), 151499 (2022).
- de Oliveira, M., Mesquita, L. C. C., Gkantonas, S., Giusti, A. and Mastorakos, E., “Evolution of spray and aerosol from respiratory releases: Theoretical estimates for insight on viral transmission”, Proc. R. Soc. A, 477 (2245), 1 (2021).
- Li, H., Leong, F. Y., Xu, G., Ge, Zh., Kang, Ch. W. and Lim, K. H., “Dispersion of evaporating cough droplets in tropical outdoor environment”, Fluids, 32 (1), 113301 (2020).
- Tatsuno, K. and Nagao, S., “Water droplet size measurements in an experimental steam turbine using an optical fiber droplet sizer”, Heat Trans., 108 (4), 939 (1986).
- Shang, Y., Tao, Y., Dong, J., He, F. and Tu, J., “Deposition features of inhaled viral droplets may lead to rapid secondary transmission of COVID-19”, Aerosol Sci., 154 (1), 105745 (2021).
- Ismail, I. M. I., Rashid,, Ali, M., Saeed Altaf, B. A. and Munir, M,. “Temperature, humidity and outdoor air quality indicators influence COVID-19 spread rate and mortality in major cities of Saudi Arabia”, Environ. Res., 204 (Pt B), 112071 (2022).
- van Doremalen, N., Bushmaker, T., Morris, D. H., Holbrook, M. G., Gamble, A. and Williamson, B. N., “Aerosol and surface stability of SARS-CoV-2 as compared with SARS-Cov-1”, Engl. J. Med., 382 (16), 1564 (2020).
- Bourouiba, L., “Turbulent gas clouds and respiratory pathogen emissions: Potential implications for reducing transmission of COVID-19”, Rev. Educ., 323 (18), 1837 (2020).
- Bake, B., Larsson, P., Ljungkvist, G., Ljungström, E. and Olin, A., “Exhaled particles and small airways”, Respiratory Research, 20 (1), 1 (2019).
- Duguid, J. P., “The size and the duration of air-carriage of respiratory droplets and droplet-nuclei”, Hygiene, 44 (6), 471 (1946).
- Edwards, D. A., Man, J. C., Brand, P., Katstra, J. P., Sommerer, K., Stone, H. A., Nardell, E. and Scheuch, G., “Inhaling to mitigate exhaled bioaerosols”, Natl. Acad. Sci., 101 (50), 383 (2004).
- Chao, C., Wan, M., Morawska, L., Johnson, G., Ristovski, Z., Hargreaves, M., Mengersen, K., Corbett, S., Li, Y., Xie, X. and Katoshevski, D., “Characterization of expiration air jets and droplet size distributions immediately at the mouth opening”, Aerosol Sci., 40 (2), 122 (2009).
- Han, Z. Y., Weng, W. G. and Huang, Q. Y., “Characterizations of particle size distribution of the droplets exhaled by sneeze”, R. Soc. Interface, 10 (88), 20130560 (2013).
- Chaudhuri, S., Basu, S., Kabi, P., Unni, V. R. and Saha, A., “Modeling the role of respiratory droplets in Covid-19 type pandemics”, Fluids, 32 (6), 063309 (2020).
- Yin, J., Norvihoho, L. K., Zhou, F., Chen, B. and Wu, W. T., “Investigation on the evaporation and dispersion of human respiratory droplets with COVID-19 virus”, Int. J. Multiph. Flow, 147 (1), 103904 (2022).
- Wang, B., Wu, H. and Wan, X. F., “Transport and fate of human expiratory droplets-A modeling approach”, Fluids, 32 (083307), 1 (2020).
- Rahimi, A. and Bakhshi, A., “A simple one-dimensional model for investigation of heat and mass transfer effects on removal efficiency of particulate matters in a venturi scrubber”, J. Chem. Eng. (IAChE), 6 (4), 3 (2009).
- Robinson, J. F., de Anda, I. R., Moore, F. J., Reid, J. P., Sear, R. P. and Royall, C. P., “Efficacy of face coverings in reducing transmission of COVID-19: Calculations based on models of droplet capture”, Fluids, 33 (1), 1 (2021).
- Liu, L., Wei, J., Li, Y. and Ooi, A., “Evaporation and dispersion of respiratory droplets from coughing”, Indoor Air, 27 (1), 179 (2017).
- ANSI/ASHRAE, “ANSI/ASHRAE standard 169-2013”, Climatic data for building design standards, 8400, p. 104 (2013).
- Bahramian, A., Mohammadi, M. and Ahmadi G., “Effect of indoor temperature on the velocity fields and airborne transmission of sneeze droplets: An experimental study and transient CFD modeling”, Total Environ., 858 (1), 159444 (2023).
- Liu, K., Allahyari, M., Salinas, J. S., Zgheib, N. and Balachandar, S., “Investigation of theoretical scaling laws using large eddy simulations for airborne spreading of viral contagion from sneezing and coughing”, Fluids, 33 (1), 063318 (2021).
- Morawska, L., Johnson, G. R., Ristovski, Z. D., Hargreaves, , Mengersen, K., Corbett, S., Chao, C. Y. H., Li, Y. and Katoshevski, D., “Size distribution and sites of origin of droplets expelled from the human respiratory tract during expiratory activities”, J. Aerosol Sci., 40 (3), 256 (2009).
- Jafari, S., Khaleghi, H. and Maddahian, R., “Comparative analysis of a single fuel droplet evaporation”, Chem. Petrol. Eng., 53 (1), 81 (2019).
- Chen, L. D., “Effect of ambient temperature and humidity on droplet lifetime-A perspective of exhalation sneeze droplets with COVID-19 virus transmission”, J. Hygiene & Environ. Health, 229 (1), 113568 (2020).
- Balusamy, S., Banerjee, S. and Sahu, K. C., “Lifetime of sessile saliva droplets in the context of SARS-CoV-2”, Commun. Heat & Mass Transfer, 123 (1), 105178 (2021).
- Katre, P., Banerjee, S., Balusamy, S. and Sahu, K. C., “Fluid dynamics of respiratory droplets in the context of COVID-19: Airborne and surfaceborne transmissions”, Fluids, 33 (1), 081302 (2021).
- Reid, R. C., Paruznitz, J. M. and Polling, B. E., The properties of gases and liquids, fourth ed., McGraw-Hill, p. 582 (1987).