Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 17, 2026

Design and Optimization Strategies of a High-Performance Vented Box
14:23

Design and Optimization Strategies of a High-Performance Vented Box

Published on: June 9, 2023

Application of CFD simulation to predicting upper-room UVGI effectiveness.

Carl A Gilkeson1, Catherine Noakes

  • 1Pathogen Control Engineering Institute, School of Civil Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.

Photochemistry and Photobiology
|October 31, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations can predict upper-room ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) effectiveness for system design. Two-dimensional irradiance fields are sufficient for modeling microorganism inactivation, aiding UVGI application development.

Related Concept Videos

Heating and Cooling Curves02:44

Heating and Cooling Curves

When a substance—isolated from its environment—is subjected to heat changes, corresponding changes in temperature and phase of the substance is observed; this is graphically represented by heating and cooling curves.
For instance, the addition of heat raises the temperature of a solid; the amount of heat absorbed depends on the heat capacity of the solid (q = mcsolidΔT). According to thermochemistry, the relation between the amount of heat absorbed or released by a substance, q, and its...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Technology-enabled CONTACT tracing in care homes in the COVID-19 pandemic: the CONTACT non-randomised mixed-methods feasibility study.

Health technology assessment (Winchester, England)·2025
Same author

CONTACT: a non-randomised feasibility study of bluetooth-enabled wearables for contact tracing in UK care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pilot and feasibility studies·2024
Same author

Quality in care homes: How wearable devices and social network analysis might help.

PloS one·2024
Same author

Mandating indoor air quality for public buildings.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2024
Same author

'Smart' BLE wearables for digital contact tracing in care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic-a process evaluation of the CONTACT feasibility study.

Implementation science communications·2023
Same author

Air pollution and climate change.

The Lancet. Planetary health·2023

Area of Science:

  • Environmental Engineering
  • Microbiology
  • Computational Science

Background:

  • Upper-room ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) is a promising air disinfection technology.
  • Accurate prediction of UVGI effectiveness is crucial for system design and public health applications.
  • Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) offers a potential tool for simulating UVGI performance.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the potential of CFD simulations for predicting upper-room UVGI effectiveness.
  • To assess the influence of various modeling parameters on dose distribution and microorganism inactivation predictions.
  • To guide the design of UVGI systems and inform future development of guidelines.

Main Methods:

  • A numerical study was conducted using two wall-mounted UVGI lamps in a mechanically ventilated test chamber.

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 17, 2026

Design and Optimization Strategies of a High-Performance Vented Box
14:23

Design and Optimization Strategies of a High-Performance Vented Box

Published on: June 9, 2023

  • Irradiance fields were obtained via radiometry and implemented in the CFD model.
  • Sensitivity analyses were performed on UVGI field accuracy, computational grid, turbulence models, ventilation parameters, lamp configuration, and microorganism susceptibility.

    • Main Results:

    • Two-dimensional (2D) irradiance fields were found to be sufficient for accurate dose and inactivation calculations, while one-dimensional (1D) fields were inadequate.
    • CFD modeling successfully demonstrated the feasibility of simulating the interaction between airflow and UV fields to quantify dose distribution.
    • While passive scalars and species transport models can simulate microorganism inactivation, further validation is required for reliable quantitative predictions.

    Conclusions:

    • CFD simulations show significant potential for predicting upper-room UVGI effectiveness, aiding in system design and optimization.
    • The study highlights the importance of using appropriate dimensionality (2D) for irradiance fields in CFD models for accurate UVGI performance assessment.
    • Further research and validation are needed to fully establish CFD as a reliable tool for quantitative prediction of microorganism inactivation by UVGI.