| 1. |
- Vuorinen, V., et al.
(författare)
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Modelling aerosol transport and virus exposure with numerical simulations in relation to SARS-CoV-2 transmission by inhalation indoors
- 2020
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Ingår i: Safety Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0925-7535. ; 130
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We provide research findings on the physics of aerosol and droplet dispersion relevant to the hypothesized aerosol transmission of SARS-CoV-2 during the current pandemic. We utilize physics-based modeling at different levels of complexity, along with previous literature on coronaviruses, to investigate the possibility of airborne transmission. The previous literature, our 0D-3D simulations by various physics-based models, and theoretical calculations, indicate that the typical size range of speech and cough originated droplets (d⩽20μm) allows lingering in the air for O(1h) so that they could be inhaled. Consistent with the previous literature, numerical evidence on the rapid drying process of even large droplets, up to sizes O(100μm), into droplet nuclei/aerosols is provided. Based on the literature and the public media sources, we provide evidence that the individuals, who have been tested positive on COVID-19, could have been exposed to aerosols/droplet nuclei by inhaling them in significant numbers e.g. O(100). By 3D scale-resolving computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, we give various examples on the transport and dilution of aerosols (d⩽20μm) over distances O(10m) in generic environments. We study susceptible and infected individuals in generic public places by Monte-Carlo modelling. The developed model takes into account the locally varying aerosol concentration levels which the susceptible accumulate via inhalation. The introduced concept, ’exposure time’ to virus containing aerosols is proposed to complement the traditional ’safety distance’ thinking. We show that the exposure time to inhale O(100) aerosols could range from O(1s) to O(1min) or even to O(1h) depending on the situation. The Monte-Carlo simulations, along with the theory, provide clear quantitative insight to the exposure time in different public indoor environments.
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| 2. |
- Laaksonen, Katri, et al.
(författare)
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Nanoparticles of TiO2 and VO2 in dielectric media : Conditions for low optical scattering, and comparison between effective medium and four-flux theories
- 2014
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Ingår i: Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells. - : Saunders Elsevier. - 0927-0248 .- 1879-3398. ; 130:SI, s. 132-137
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Spectral transmittance and reflectance in the 300 to 2500 nm solar-optical wavelength range were calculated for nanoparticles of titanium dioxide and vanadium dioxide with radii between 5 and 100 nm embedded in transparent dielectric media. Both of the materials are of large importance in green nanotechnologies: thus TiO2 is a photocatalyst that can be applied as a porous film or a nanoparticle composite on indoor or outdoor surfaces for environmental remediation, and VO2 is a thermochromic material with applications to energy-efficient fenestration. The optical properties, including scattering, of the nanoparticle composites were computed from the Maxwell–Garnett effective-medium theory as well as from a four-flux radiative transfer model. Predictions from these theories approach one another in the limit of small particles and in the absence of optical interference. Effects of light scattering can be modeled only by the four-flux theory, though. We found that nanoparticle radii should be less than ~20 nm in order to avoid pronounced light scattering.
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| 3. |
- Pitkänen, H., et al.
(författare)
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Ab initio study of the phase stability in paramagnetic duplex steel alloys
- 2009
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Ingår i: Physical Review B. Condensed Matter and Materials Physics. - : APS. - 1098-0121 .- 1550-235X. ; 79:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Duplex stainless steels have many superior properties compared to conventional steels, this being mainly due to their microstructure containing approximately equal amount of ferrite and austenite phases formed by iron, chromium (or Cr equivalent), and nickel (or Ni equivalent). Using computational methods based on first-principles theories, the phase stability of paramagnetic Fe1-c-nCrcNin alloys (0.12 <= c <= 0.32 and 0.04 <= n <= 0.32) at high temperatures (greater than or similar to 1000 K) is addressed. It is shown that the stabilization of the ferrite-austenite two-phase field in duplex steels is a result of complex interplay of several competing phenomena. Taking into account only the formation energies yields a complete phase separation, strongly overestimating the two-phase region. The formation energies are calculated to be lower for the austenite than for the ferrite, meaning that the configurational entropy has a more significant impact on the stability field of the austenitic phase. The magnetic and vibrational free energies have opposite effects on the phase stability. Namely, the magnetic entropy favors the ferrite phase, whereas the vibrational free energy stabilizes the austenite phase. Combining the formation energies with the magnetic, vibrational, and configurational free energies, a region of coexistence between the two phases is obtained, in line with former thermodynamic assessments as well as with experimental observations.
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| 4. |
- Pitkänen, H., et al.
(författare)
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Ab initio study of the surface properties of austenitic stainless steel alloys
- 2013
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Ingår i: Surface Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0039-6028 .- 1879-2758. ; 609, s. 190-194
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Using ab initio calculations we investigated the surface energies of paramagnetic Fe1-c-nCrcNin random alloys within the concentration range of 0.12 <= c <= 032 and 0.04 <= n <= 0.32. These alloys crystallize mainly in the face centred cubic (fcc) structure and constitute the main building blocks of austenitic stainless steels. It is shown that all alloys have the lowest surface energies along the most close packed crystal orientation, namely the fcc (111) surfaces. The amount of Ni seems to have little effect on the surface energy, while almost all composition-driven change may be attributed to the changes in the Cr content. Within the studied compositional range, the change of the surface energy with the composition is of the order of 10%. Trends of the surface energy can be related to the magnetic structure of surfaces. Using the total energy as a function of the concentration, we determine the effective chemical potentials in bulk and at the surface, which can be used to estimate the surface segregation energies.
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