Particle and Bio-Aerosol Tracking, Capture and Analysis

Many industry processes involve the movement of particles through air or liquid, such as by-products from catalytic processes in reactor vent lines, dust particles from grinding, cutting or milling operations; and aerosols from coating or spraying processes. Aerosols are also commonly present in everyday life where biological matter such as viruses, bacteria, allergens and fungi produced from coughs, sneezes and other sources are transported as bio-aerosols to humans and animals.  

Particle capture and analysis refers to techniques used to track, capture and analyse these particles to understand their behaviour, size distribution and composition. This is crucial for optimizing process efficiency, ensuring product quality and troubleshooting manufacturing processes. 

Computation fluid dynamics (CFD) allows us to simulate particle trajectories, interactions, erosion and deposition patterns providing valuable insights for particle capture, process optimization and troubleshooting.  

Within the discipline of bio-aerosol analysis, particle capture must be conducted carefully in order to avoid mechanically stressing delicate bio-particles. A common approach is to design a virtual impactor which increases the concentration of particles, filtering them by their inertia. With sufficiently high particle concentrations, particles can then be captured in a wet scrubber or cyclone, allowing for particle sampling and analysis.