Designing and Simulating a Smart Air Purifier to Combat HVAC-induced COVID-19 Transmission

Although heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems serve the important function of providing fresh air changes for indoor spaces, they have been shown to distribute aerosolized severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) across such spaces and potentially exacerbate the risk of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission. This paper proposes a solution to this issue in the form of a distributed network of compact air purifier modules stationed on tables, to be implemented alongside an HVAC system. Each module would use a high efficiency particulate air filter to capture SARS-CoV-2 and an ultraviolet C light-emitting diode (UVC LED) to routinely sterilize the filter. The module's structure is outlined using Computer Aided Design, its Internet of Things networking capabilities are mapped out using microcontrollers and a mobile application, and its potential impacts are modeled using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The module would capture at least 99.97% of SARS-CoV-2 particles it encounters, fully decontaminate its filter with 108.4s of UVC exposure, and treat potentially contaminated air before an HVAC system pushes such air to others by manipulating airflow.