tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Build Environ
. 2022 Feb 15;210:108728.
doi: 10.1016/j.buildenv.2021.108728. Epub 2021 Dec 27.
Experimental testing of air filter efficiency against the SARS-CoV-2 virus: The role of droplet and airborne transmission
Cesare Saccani[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Alessandro Guzzini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Caterina Vocale[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Davide Gori[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Marco Pellegrini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Maria Pia Fantini[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Alessandra Primavera[SUP] 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Verifying the capacity of different types of air filters to stop the propagation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has become a strategic element to contain viral spreading in enclosed spaces. This paper shows the results of experimental tests about the capacity of different commercial filter grades to stop SARS-CoV-2 propagation using inactivated virions. In the first test, the obtained results showed that the F8 filter blocks SARS-CoV-2 propagation if it encounters a flow devoid of liquid phase, i.e., a biphasic flow that can wet the filtering material. On the contrary, as shown in the second test, the SARS-CoV-2 virus propagates through the F8 filter if the droplet content in the air flow is enough to wet it. In these operational conditions, i.e., when the filter is wet by a flow with a high droplet content, the absolute H14 filter was also shown to fail to stop the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Lastly, in the third test, the viral load was shown to be stopped when the pathway of the infected droplet is blocked.
Keywords: Air filters; COVID-19; Coronavirus disease 2019; Experimental testing; Heating ventilation and air conditioning systems; SARS Coronavirus.
. 2022 Feb 15;210:108728.
doi: 10.1016/j.buildenv.2021.108728. Epub 2021 Dec 27.
Experimental testing of air filter efficiency against the SARS-CoV-2 virus: The role of droplet and airborne transmission
Cesare Saccani[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Alessandro Guzzini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Caterina Vocale[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Davide Gori[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Marco Pellegrini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Maria Pia Fantini[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Alessandra Primavera[SUP] 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 34975206
- PMCID: PMC8710432
- DOI: 10.1016/j.buildenv.2021.108728
Abstract
Verifying the capacity of different types of air filters to stop the propagation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has become a strategic element to contain viral spreading in enclosed spaces. This paper shows the results of experimental tests about the capacity of different commercial filter grades to stop SARS-CoV-2 propagation using inactivated virions. In the first test, the obtained results showed that the F8 filter blocks SARS-CoV-2 propagation if it encounters a flow devoid of liquid phase, i.e., a biphasic flow that can wet the filtering material. On the contrary, as shown in the second test, the SARS-CoV-2 virus propagates through the F8 filter if the droplet content in the air flow is enough to wet it. In these operational conditions, i.e., when the filter is wet by a flow with a high droplet content, the absolute H14 filter was also shown to fail to stop the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Lastly, in the third test, the viral load was shown to be stopped when the pathway of the infected droplet is blocked.
Keywords: Air filters; COVID-19; Coronavirus disease 2019; Experimental testing; Heating ventilation and air conditioning systems; SARS Coronavirus.