ASHRAE Insights

Some 700,000 cases of surgical site infections reportedly occur each year, leading to time away from work, degraded life style, suffering, and in some cases, death.

New research funded by ASHRAE is expected to decrease patient exposure to particles that cause these infections by enhancing design guidelines for hospital operating rooms.

ASHRAE recently released nine projects for bid, including 1397-TRP, Experimental Investigation of Hospital Operating Room (OR) Air Distribution.

The research is expected to verify earlier analysis that a protective thermal plume maintained above the surgical site will reduce the deposition of infectious particles, according to Robert Cox, a member of TC 9.6, Health Care Facilities, which is sponsoring the project.

"These results will have significant impact on practical operating room design guidelines, allowing designers to better place air distribution in the operating room to maximize the HVAC system's impact on preventing spread of infection and to perhaps reduce overall airflow rates in the operating room," said Cox.

Results also could be used to improve air distribution engineering elsewhere in health care, such as patient protection rooms and infection isolation rooms, and in similar applications, such as industrial cleanrooms.

For more information on how to submit a project bid, visit www.ashrae.org/research.

Other projects currently open for bid are:
• 1287-TRP, Particle Counter Specification for Use with Filter Performance Test Standard ANSI/ASHRAE 52.2, sponsored by TC 2.4, Particulate Air Contaminants and Particulate Containment Removal Equipment;
• 1361-TRP, Biological Control in Cooling Towers Using Non-Chemical Water Treatment Devices, TC 3.6, Water Treatment;
• 1376-TRP, Method of Test to Evaluate Field Performance of Commercial Kitchen Ventilation Systems, TC 5.10, Kitchen Ventilation;
• 1388-TRP, Reevaluation of High-Altitude Effects on Operation of Gas-Fired Boilers and Water Heaters, TC 6.10, Fuels and Combustion;
• 1394-TRP, Study of Carbon Dioxide Condensation in a Chevron Angle Plate Geometry Exchanger, TC 8.5, Liquid-to-Refrigerant Heat Exchangers;
• 1402-TRP, Comparison of Vertical Display Cases, TC 10.7, Commercial Food and Beverage Cooling Display and Storage;
• 1431-TRP, Analysis of Transient Characteristics, Effectiveness and Optimization of Cleanroom Airlocks, TC 9.11, Clean Spaces;
• 1457-RFP, Byproduct Production from Photocatalytic Oxidation Associated with Indoor Air Cleaning Devices, TC 2.3, Gaseous Air Contaminants and Gas Containment Removal Equipment.