Risk of Microbial Growth in Ventilation Ductwork Located in the Humid and Cold Conditions
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Ductwork and Measurement Equipment Setup
2.2. Microbial Media Preparation, Initial Duct Surface Contamination
2.3. Biological Sampling, Schematic and Schedule
2.4. Analysis of Biological Samples
2.5. Ductowrk Conditions: Airflow, Temperature and Humidity during the Experiment
3. Results
3.1. Duct Surface Contact Samples for Fungal Growth
3.2. Duct Surface Swab Fungal and Bacterial Growth
3.3. Ductwork Air Samples
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Device | Parameter | Accuracy |
---|---|---|
Tinytag plus 2, TGP-4500 | Air temperature, Relative humidity | 0.5 °C (0… +45 °C); ±3% RH at 25 °C; 5 min interval |
PT100 class A | Duct surface temperature | ±0.19 °C at 20 °C |
Airflow LCA 6000 | Air velocity | 0.25 to 4.99 m/s: ±0.1 m/s 5 to 30 m/s: calibrated better than ±2% of reading |
Sampling | Method | 11.17.2020 | 12.18.2020 | 01.18.2021 | 02.15.2021 | 03.10.2021 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Contact, Fungal | Petri film | ● | ● | ● | ● | ● |
Swab, Fungal | 10 × 10 cm2 area swabing | ● | ● | |||
Swab, Bacterial | 10 × 10 cm2 area swabing | ● | ● | |||
Air, Fungal | Anderson collector | ● | ● | |||
Air, Bacterial | Anderson collector | ● | ● |
Swab Sample | Bacterial Colonies | Fungi Colonies |
---|---|---|
Change Ratio 1 | Change Ratio | |
Intermittent ventilation: | 0.41 | 0.27 |
Continuous ventilation: | 0.46 | 0.08 |
Air Sample | At the Beginning of the Duct | End of the Duct |
---|---|---|
Change Ratio 1 | Change Ratio | |
Intermittent ventilation: | 0.05 | 0.33 |
Continuous ventilation: | 0.09 | 0.2 |
Air Sample | At the Beginning of the Duct | End of the Duct |
---|---|---|
Change Ratio 1 | Change Ratio | |
Intermittent ventilation: | 0.09 | 0.18 |
Continuous ventilation: | 0.0 | 0.67 |
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Kravchenko, I.; Pasanen, P.; Lestinen, S.; Kilpeläinen, S.; Kosonen, R. Risk of Microbial Growth in Ventilation Ductwork Located in the Humid and Cold Conditions. Buildings 2023, 13, 1683. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13071683
Kravchenko I, Pasanen P, Lestinen S, Kilpeläinen S, Kosonen R. Risk of Microbial Growth in Ventilation Ductwork Located in the Humid and Cold Conditions. Buildings. 2023; 13(7):1683. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13071683
Chicago/Turabian StyleKravchenko, Ilia, Pertti Pasanen, Sami Lestinen, Simo Kilpeläinen, and Risto Kosonen. 2023. "Risk of Microbial Growth in Ventilation Ductwork Located in the Humid and Cold Conditions" Buildings 13, no. 7: 1683. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13071683
APA StyleKravchenko, I., Pasanen, P., Lestinen, S., Kilpeläinen, S., & Kosonen, R. (2023). Risk of Microbial Growth in Ventilation Ductwork Located in the Humid and Cold Conditions. Buildings, 13(7), 1683. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13071683