Air purifiers could do more harm than good during the pandemic – according to a new study that could help spread COVID-19 droplets indoors.
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 a crowded elevator.
“The air purifier reduces the dispersion of the drops, but it will not eliminate it. The integrated air intake inside the purification equipment induces the flow of flow that can be added to the transport of contaminated saliva droplets in the cabin “, wrote the authors Talib Dbouka and Dimitris Drikakis.
“The results of this study are relevant to any confined spaces, including small rooms in residential or commercial facilities, parking lots, shops, as well as an aircraft cabin, submarines and spaceships,” the scientists added.
They also suggested that “future ventilation and purification systems should aim to reduce AVT. [airborne virus transmission] by minimizing droplet dispersion. ”