Effects of Ventilation Schemes and Heat Sources on the Effectiveness of Upper-room Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation Systems in Hospital or Health Care Facilities

Airborne nosocomial infection is a serious problem in many hospitals or health facilities. Upper-room ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) has potential to be an effective disinfection device for hospital and health care settings. However, though systems claim to be effective, the field efficacy is questionable and unpredictable. Systematic studies to quantify the performance of such system are needed to develop optimal designs for controlling airborne infections.The objectives are to develop an effective computational tool to model the performance of UVGI systems and to identify and quantify the key parameters which affect the performance.