Open the windows while eating Christmas dinner: the simulation reveals how fresh air removes coronavirus particles in the dining room
- Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence experts in Japan did the simulation
- We see what happens to particles expelled from the mouth of an infected person
- Reveals the opening of windows and doors to improve ventilation has a significant impact on the number of infectious particles in the room
A shocking new video reveals the risks people take when eating Christmas with someone who lives in another home.
It shows how in a typical British dining room circulate coronavirus particles expelled from the mouth of someone who infects other people.
Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence experts in Japan built a model to show the level of risk an asymptomatic person poses to other people at a table.
Engineers hope their simulation can help individuals and families assess the risk of mixing during the holiday season.
The researchers worked on room dimensions of 4.9 mx 3.7 m (16 feet x 12 feet) and ran two versions of their simulation, with the room closed without ventilation (left) and another with two windows and an open door, each for ten minutes (right)
The researchers worked on room dimensions of 4.9 mx 3.7 m (16 feet x 12 feet) and ran two versions of their simulation, with the room closed without ventilation and another with two windows and a door open, each for ten minutes.
In the videos, researchers map particles ejected from a person’s mouth during regular breathing and conversation.
This causes a relatively pedestrian spread of particles compared to coughing or sneezing.
“Hexagon engineers in Japan created the simulation as part of a public education effort, to help authorities and the general public understand how they can better protect each other from COVID-19 transmission. said Keith Perrin, Hexagon’s industry director at MailOnline.
“Being Japanese, they were used to distancing themselves socially and wearing PPE when they were sick, so they were fascinated by other attitudes.”
The heat from the radiators, the food and the people sitting around a dinner table force the particles towards the ceiling, but if there is not enough ventilation, they have nowhere to escape and are forced to go down and swirl. for the room.
However, if there is ample ventilation from the open windows, the particles are almost immediately sucked in and away from other people.
“Good ventilation is key; just make sure as many windows and doors open as possible to help circulate the air and keep particles from accumulating,” Perrin said.
In the videos, researchers map particles ejected from a person’s mouth during regular breathing and conversation. This causes a relatively pedestrian spread of particles compared to coughing or sneezing
The heat from the radiators, the food and the people sitting around a dinner table force the particles towards the ceiling, but if there is not enough ventilation, they have nowhere to escape and are forced to go down and swirl around the ‘room
If there is ample ventilation of open windows, infectious particles are aspirated almost immediately and removed from other people.
“Social distancing is important regardless of room ventilation, but it is not a fault: the simulation without ventilation shows that the number of infected particles accumulates and travels beyond the recommended minimum spacing of 2 m, so that achieving airflow in the room is very important to maximize the effectiveness of social distancing.
“However, at the end of the segment, there are some elements that compare the effect of an open window.”
He reveals that according to his calculations, an infected person in a room without ventilation would infect six more people.
However, in a medium ventilated dining room, statistically no one else would be infected.
‘This simple effort results in a statistically significant change.
“To give you an idea, over three iterations of transmission, assuming similar conditions, mathematically there are 215 fewer infected people.” he says.
“Our studies show that it’s not about ‘if’ it will be transmitted, but about ‘when’.”
The Hexagon team has used their experience throughout the pandemic to show people how invisible drops and aerosols can spread without people knowing.
One of his videos shows how it is better to suffocate a sneeze with an elbow than not to stop it, but it can still endanger those close to you.
Another visualization showed what can happen if a person does not wear a mask on the tube or train.
How to walk down a narrow corridor BEHIND an infected person increases the risk of taking Covid-19
One study warns that coronavirus particles expelled from a person’s bare mouth in a confined space like a hallway can stay behind them for a few seconds.
The finding comes from computer simulations that show the behavior of particles after someone walking forward coughs.
Swirling air and vortices allow particles to float at waist height in the air up to five meters behind the infected person, which poses significant problems for social distancing and increases the risk of infection. of children.
Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing used a 1.8 m (5 foot 11 inch) man walking at 1.5 m / s (3.5 mph) as an example.
They modeled what would happen if he coughed, without a face mask, both in open spaces and in a narrow hallway.
Previous studies have focused almost exclusively on the spread of infectious particles in places without confinements. This new study investigated how the behavior of particles differs if they are physically covered.
They found that when walking in confined spaces, airborne droplets carrying the deadly virus follow a specific pattern, called “separation mode.”
Computer visualization shows that particles are thrown behind a person by air currents produced as they walk and a cloud of drops separates from the body and forms a levitating bubble of infectious aerosols several meters behind the individual.
