{"id":3659,"date":"2020-07-12T20:50:12","date_gmt":"2020-07-12T19:50:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedailyleaks.com\/?p=3659"},"modified":"2020-07-12T20:59:23","modified_gmt":"2020-07-12T19:59:23","slug":"air-conditioning-systems-can-spread-coronavirus-new-study-suggests","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedailyleaks.com\/air-conditioning-systems-can-spread-coronavirus-new-study-suggests\/","title":{"rendered":"Air conditioning systems can spread coronavirus, new study suggests"},"content":{"rendered":"

Air conditioning systems could play a role in spreading the coronavirus, a recent study<\/a> suggests.<\/p>\n

The published<\/a> study looks at a woman in China who dined at a restaurant days before she showed COVID-19 symptoms. Researchers say she infected four people at her table and five at other tables because an air conditioner behind her spread droplets from her speech.<\/p>\n

These findings suggest air conditioners can blow around infected droplets hanging in the air, says University of Maryland environmental health professor\u00a0Donald Milton<\/a>. With enough air movement, your nose can pull in large particles, he says. Think pollen, for example.<\/p>\n

The restaurant had exhaust fans that were sealed up at the time of the infections, he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was no fresh air coming in,\u201d he says. \u201cOutbreaks \u2014 where you have a bunch of people infected all at once like that \u2014 are almost exclusively occurring indoors in poorly ventilated environments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some increasingly popular systems recirculate the air but don’t bring in fresh air or provide filtration. Called splits, these air conditioners are popular because of their energy efficiency, he says.<\/p>\n

Ceiling fans also move the air around but don\u2019t limit the spread of the coronavirus, he says.<\/p>\n

Building managers and property owners need to look into how air is circulating through their space. Through air dilution or ventilation coming from outdoors, researchers find each person in a room should have 5 to 10 liters of fresh or filtered air per second, he says.<\/p>\n