Air purifiers may do more harm than good during the pandemic, as a new study shows they could help spread COVID-19 drops in tight spaces.
Researchers at the University of Nicosia in Cyprus conducted the study “Fluid Physics”, which was published on Tuesday to show what would happen if a person coughed in an elevator full of people.
“The air purifier reduces the dispersion of the drops but will not eliminate it. The air intake integrated in the purification equipment induces a flow circulation that can be added to the transport of contaminated saliva drops in the cabin ”, wrote the authors Talib Dbouka and Dimitris Drikakis.
“The results of this study are relevant for small spaces, including small rooms in residential or commercial facilities, parking lots, shops, as well as an aircraft cabin, submarines, and spacecraft,” the scientists added.
They also suggested: “Future ventilation and purification systems should aim to reduce VAT [airborne virus transmission] by minimizing droplet dispersion “.