Date of Award

9-2020

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Industrial Hygiene

Department

Department of Systems Engineering and Management

First Advisor

Jeremy Slagley, PhD

Abstract

Aeromedical Evacuations remain the predominant method used to transport patients from forward deployed areas of operations to secure locations with more robust medical infrastructure. Transportation of chemical warfare casualties and infectious patients require additional attention to prevent cross contamination. Specific airflow characteristics paired with environmental control system settings are a gap in scholarly literature. Based on the available literature computational fluid dynamics models were created to simulate the airflow around a patient represented by human geometry using commercially available software. In order to compare simulated and experimental results a heated manikin was placed in the MURPHEE aerosol exposure chamber and velocity of the airflow was surveyed. The survey and model results indicated that the heated manikin generated a thermal plume that increased the airflow on average at the sampled positions. More research is required to determine the impact of multiple litters during aeromedical operations and impact on cross contamination from patient to aircraft or aircrew.

AFIT Designator

AFIT-ENV-MS-20-S-070

DTIC Accession Number

AD1113944

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