AAAR 34th Annual Conference
October 12 - October 16, 2015
Hyatt Regency
Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Abstract View
Design and Development of a Portable Electrostatic Bioaerosol Sampler (PEBS) with High Sampling Flow Rate
TAEWON HAN, Gediminas Mainelis, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Abstract Number: 254 Working Group: Bioaerosols
Abstract The objective of this exploratory research is to develop a novel portable electrostatic bioaerosol sampler (PEBS), where bioaerosols are drawn into an open channel collector, electrically charged and deposited onto a removable plate covered with a superhydrophobic substance. The new sampler will allow a more accurate monitoring of personal exposures to even low microorganism concentrations and thus improve the ability to identify the exposure risks and protect affected populations. Since this personal bioaerosol sampler will be light, self-contained and battery-operated, it will be easy to wear and apply for occupational and environmental studies and field deployments.
The prototype of PEBS was designed and optimized using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation. It has a shape of a cylinder of 1 inch in diameter and is made of static dissipative material. The collection chamber is split in two by a stainless steel rectangle collection plate (1×1.75 inches) and each half has a charger (e.g., carbon fiber) located 0.75 inches downstream of the collection plate front; this configuration allows collection of duplicate samples. The sampler features a 3D-printed air blender positioned at its inlet to improve mixing of the incoming aerosol particles with ions. When the sampler was tested at different sampling flow rates (10 to 30 L/min) and collection/charging voltages (-3 to -5 kV) with 1 micron polystyrene latex particles, it showed collection efficiency as high as 90%. In the next stage, the sampler will be further modified to improve its performance at higher flow rates and then it will be challenged with bacteria and fungi.