Engineers at the University of British Columbia’s Okanagan campus have designed a new airflow device that traps exhaled aerosols almost immediately, sharply reducing exposure to airborne pathogens in simulations. Early results suggest the system can substantially outperform conventional ventilation approaches in shared indoor spaces.
With winter approaching and people spending more time indoors, the quality of the air they breathe becomes increasingly important, especially during cold and flu season. Researchers at UBC Okanagan are examining a new air‑cleaning device that can capture airborne pathogens, offering a potential new tool for reducing the spread of respiratory diseases in enclosed spaces.
The team of mechanical engineers, who work with UBC’s Airborne Disease Transmission Research Cluster, has developed an induction‑removal, or “jet‑sink,” airflow concept that is intended to redirect airflow around occupants and draw contaminated particles into a localized purification zone before they circulate through the room.
Study co‑author Dr. Sunny Li, a professor in the School of Engineering, says traditional efforts to lower infection risk often focus on upgrading a building’s ventilation to manage large‑scale airflow. Personalized ventilation systems, such as those used on passenger airplanes, direct clean air toward individuals from a fixed distance but require people to remain in position and can cause discomfort from the constant air stream, including dry eyes and skin. “Ensuring high air quality while indoors is crucial for mitigating the transmission of airborne disease, particularly in shared environments,” Dr. Li says. “Many Canadians spend nearly 90 per cent of their time inside, making indoor air quality a critical factor for health and wellbeing.”
Postdoctoral researcher Dr. Mojtaba Zabihi, the study’s first author, says variations in room layouts and existing heating, ventilation and air‑conditioning systems make it challenging to implement uniform upgrades, which underscores the value of personalized ventilation options. “We wanted to develop an innovative system that prevents occupants from inhaling contaminated air while allowing them to use a personalized ventilation system comfortably for extended periods,” he explains.
Unlike conventional personalized ventilation systems that rely on fast‑moving air streams which can lose effectiveness when users move, the new design aims to capture exhaled aerosols before they disperse. “Our design combines comfort with control,” Dr. Zabihi says. “It creates a targeted airflow that traps and removes exhaled aerosols almost immediately—before they have a chance to spread.”
According to the team’s study, published in Building and Environment (2025; 286: 113569, DOI: 10.1016/j.buildenv.2025.113569), the researchers used computer simulations to model breathing, body heat and airflow during a 30‑minute consultation scenario and compared the new system with standard personal and room‑level ventilation. The simulations indicated that the device reduced the probability of infection to 9.5 per cent, compared with 47.6 per cent for a typical personalized setup, 38 per cent for a personal ventilation system with an exhaust design and 91 per cent under standard room ventilation.
When positioned optimally in the modelled scenario, the device prevented pathogen inhalation for the first 15 minutes of exposure. Only 10 particles out of 540,000 released in the simulation were estimated to reach another person, and the system removed up to 94 per cent of airborne pathogens.
Co‑author Dr. Joshua Brinkerhoff says these findings highlight how airflow engineering, in addition to filtration, can improve indoor air quality and occupant safety. “Traditional personalized ventilation systems can’t adapt when people move or interact,” he notes. “It’s a smart, responsive solution for spaces like clinics, classrooms or offices where close contact is unavoidable.”
The researchers say future work will focus on refining the design for larger rooms and testing physical prototypes in clinical and public settings. As a member of Canada’s National Model Codes Committee on Indoor Environment, Dr. Zabihi hopes the research will eventually help inform ventilation standards aimed at making indoor spaces safer and healthier.
