An experimentally validated analytical model for aerosol number concentration reduction in classrooms

Cao, Q.; Kuehn, T. H.; Kim, S. C.; Ou, Q.; Pei, C.; Pui, D. Y. H.

To predict the aerosol number concentration decay in modern classrooms, this study derived an analytical model that addresses various indoor factors, viz., the filtration efficiency of air ventilation systems, effects of indoor air cleaners, particle deposition on walls, and particle emission from occupants. We also conducted experimental measurements to determine the wall-loss coefficient and the occupants’ particle generation rate, and the modeling results agreed with the experimental data reasonably well. Additionally, we investigated the behavior of the particle concentration decay in different ventilation scenarios. The model has been incorporated into web-based software that is freely available to the public. © The Author(s).