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dc.contributor.authorAgranovski, IE
dc.contributor.authorPyankov, OV
dc.contributor.authorAltman, IS
dc.contributor.editorRichard C Flagan
dc.date.accessioned2017-05-03T13:07:39Z
dc.date.available2017-05-03T13:07:39Z
dc.date.issued2005
dc.identifier.issn0278-6826
dc.identifier.doi10.1080/02786820500380230
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10072/4261
dc.description.abstractMailing envelopes containing pathogenic spores of bacillus anthraxes, which have recently been used by terrorists to infect humans, calls for a new investigation to identify a level of possible contamination of ambient air as a result of the opening of such envelopes. Here we show that opening an envelope and unfolding a letter aerosolize microbial particles located inside and create their cloud with the diameter equivalent to the length of the letter side along which it was folded. With no motion of an envelope recipient (first case study presented in this paper), the front of the cloud moves due to forced convection caused by the impulse at opening and reaches a human face (approximately 50 cm from the opening zone) in about 6 sec. The concentration of particles at that distance is about three times lower compared to the concentration in the source. Further spread of the cloud brings its front to the distances of 1 and 1.5 meters within 25 and 55 seconds with the corresponding concentrations of around 10% and 5% compared to the source respectively. The second case study presents the results for a more realistic scenario when an envelope recipient, after observing a dust cloud appearing as the result of the opening of the envelope, recoils in fright creating additional air flows significantly disturbing the aerosol propagation described in the former study. It was found theoretically and verified by experiments that the amount of particles captured by the letter recipient varies significantly depending on the geometrical characteristics of the human, distance to the opening zone, reaction time, and recoil velocity.
dc.description.peerreviewedYes
dc.description.publicationstatusYes
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherTAYLOR & FRANCIS INC
dc.publisher.placeUnited States
dc.relation.ispartofstudentpublicationN
dc.relation.ispartofpagefrom1048
dc.relation.ispartofpageto1055
dc.relation.ispartofjournalAEROSOL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
dc.relation.ispartofvolume39
dc.rights.retentionY
dc.subject.fieldofresearchChemical sciences
dc.subject.fieldofresearchEarth sciences
dc.subject.fieldofresearchEngineering
dc.subject.fieldofresearchcode34
dc.subject.fieldofresearchcode37
dc.subject.fieldofresearchcode40
dc.titleBioaerosol Contamination of Ambient Air as the Result of Opening Envelopes Containing Microbial Materials
dc.typeJournal article
dc.type.descriptionC1 - Articles
dc.type.codeC - Journal Articles
gro.facultyGriffith Sciences, Griffith School of Engineering
gro.date.issued2015-02-03T03:04:05Z
gro.hasfulltextNo Full Text
gro.griffith.authorAgranovski, Igor E.


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