Airflow inside car may be Covid transmission risk: Study

New York, Dec 5 : Airflow patterns inside a car’s passenger cabin offers some suggestions for potentially reducing the risk of Covid-19 transmission while sharing rides with others, say researchers, including one of Indian-origin.
The study, published in the journal Science Advances, used computer models to simulate the airflow inside a compact car with various combinations of windows open or closed.
The simulations showed that opening windows — the more windows the better — created airflow patterns that dramatically reduced the concentration of airborne particles exchanged between a driver and a single passenger.
The researchers found that blasting the car’s ventilation system didn’t circulate air nearly as well as a few open windows.
“Driving around with the windows up and the air conditioning or heat on is definitely the worst scenario, according to our computer simulations,” said study author Asimanshu Das from the Brown University in the US.
“The best scenario we found was having all four windows open, but even having one or two open was far better than having them all closed,” Das added.