An experimental study of bioaerosol (1–10 μm) deposition in a ventilated chamber

Understanding of bioaerosols deposition in ventilated environments can significantly improve our current knowledge on exposure. This study presents an experimental and numerical analysis for bioaerosol deposition in a scaled ventilation chamber. Three different group sizes of common indoor airborne bioaersols ranging from 1 to 10 μm, (Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus), (Aspergillus niger, Penicillium citrinum) and (Rhizopus sp.), were atomized and injected to a small chamber with three controllable ventilation flow rates varying from 1.7 h−1 to 18.8 h−1. Twenty-eight (7 × 4) Petri dishes were placed at the bottom of the chamber and deposition was counted after inoculation. A commercial computational fluid dynamics tool was used to predict bioaerosol deposition. The results were compared with experiments and satisfactory agreements between them were observed. The results reveal that the larger the aerosol size, the shorter the deposition distance away from the inlet. The comparisons are further improved if non-spherical shape factor is considered.

► We present an experimental and numerical analysis for bioaerosol depositions.
► Small sized bioaerosol is strongly influenced by airflow.
► The larger bioaerosol size, the shorter deposition distance is found.
► The prediction will improve if non-spherical shape factor is considered.