A hybrid model for investigating transient particle transport in enclosed environments

Chun Chen, Wei Liu, Fei Li, Chao Hsin Lin, Junjie Liu, Jingjing Pei, Qingyan Chen

Research output: Journal article publicationJournal articleAcademic researchpeer-review

49 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

It is important to accurately model person-to-person particle transport in mechanical ventilation spaces to create and maintain a healthy indoor environment. The present study introduces a hybrid DES-Lagrangian and RANS-Eulerian model for simulating transient particle transport in enclosed environments; this hybrid model can ensure the accuracy and reduce the computing cost. Our study estimated two key time constants for the model that are important parameters for reducing the computing costs. The two time constants estimated were verified by airflow data from both an office and an aircraft cabin case. This study also conducted experiments in the first-class cabin of an MD-82 commercial airliner with heated manikins to validate the hybrid model. A pulse particle source was applied at the mouth of an index manikin to simulate a cough. The particle concentrations versus time were measured at the breathing zone of the other manikins. The trend of particle concentrations versus time predicted by the hybrid model agrees with the experimental data. Therefore, the proposed hybrid model can be used for investigating transient particle transport in enclosed environments.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)45-54
Number of pages10
JournalBuilding and Environment
Volume62
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Apr 2013

Keywords

  • Aircraft cabin
  • Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)
  • Detached Eddy Simulation (DES)
  • Eulerian drift flux model
  • Lagrangian model
  • Office

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Environmental Engineering
  • Civil and Structural Engineering
  • Geography, Planning and Development
  • Building and Construction

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