Device to warn of the risk of Covid-19 infection at schools and offices

British scientists have developed a device that can warn of the risk of Covid-19 infection in schools and offices by measuring CO2 levels in the air.

The device warns of the risk of Covid-19 infection by measuring the concentration of CO2 in the air.

According to an article in the journal Indoor and Built Environment, the device was co-developed by researchers at Imperial College London, the University of Cambridge and the University of Leeds. The device uses data about CO2 concentrations and density of people in a space to predict the number of people at risk of exposure if there is a person in the room with Covid-19 who has no symptoms.

The researchers suggest that humans exhale CO2, so higher levels of CO2 in a room mean a higher density of people in the room and less efficient ventilation. Therefore, CO2 concentration can be an indicator of whether the air quality is sufficiently ventilated, thereby providing solutions such as improving ventilation or reducing the number of people present at the same time in the room. . Observable data from the device shows that a 50% reduction in the density of people in a room can reduce the risk of airborne virus transmission by 4 times.

Study author Dr Henry Burridge at Imperial College London said that monitoring CO2 levels in shared spaces such as offices and classrooms could assess the risk of exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus when The number of people in the room is always changing. He stressed the importance of improving ventilation in enclosed public spaces.

The results of a study published last month in New Zealand have shown that opening the doors and windows of classrooms is the best way to increase air circulation in classrooms. Good ventilation conditions will help bring clean air from the outside to the inside and prevent the risk of polluted air circulating in the enclosed space.