Particle resuspension by flow-induced surface motion on flexible material

Particle resuspension has long been considered as an important secondary source of indoor air pollution. However, previous theoretical studies on particle resuspension from rigid surfaces may not be sufficient to accurately describe the real phenomenon because flexible surface motion induced by airflow in indoor scenarios may also contribute to the resuspension. To clarify this issue, an investigation of particle resuspension by flow-induced flutter was carried out experimentally here. The results showed that the flutter of substrate significantly enhanced the resuspension, with a local resuspension fraction of up to 100%, while few particles can be resuspended from a fixed substrate under the same wind speed. The resuspension fraction increased as wind speed increased, which was also related to particle size and position. The maximum local acceleration of the fluttering substrate exceeded a thousand times the gravitational acceleration, which indicated that the acceleration may play an important role in enhancing particle resuspension.