High-performance aerosol collector with liquid phase circulation and pre-concentration of particles

Testing the environment for bio-aerosols is an important feature of biosafety in the modern world. It is often necessary to collect aerosols from large areas in a short time, which requires outstanding collection efficiency, sufficiently high flow rate of incoming air and ability to maintain the viability of the collected samples. The paper presents the results of creating an effective sampling device capable of operating at airflow rates of 4000 liters per minute. The device consists of two functional parts - a virtual impactor and a cyclone collector with liquid phase of deposition. We present all the necessary calculations and algorithm to simulate parameters of the impactor. The sampling device was tested using dry and liquid dispersed particles with a diameter of 0.5 to 5 μm. We demonstrated that at a flow rate of about 4000 l / min, the efficiency of collecting of particles is more than 20% of the total aerosol mass, and at a flow rate of more than 300 l / min, this value exceeds 60 %. The proposed device supports the viability of the collected microorganisms. The paper also presents the results of testing the device at infrastructure objects. The device is portable, with easy settings for sampling and cleaning, and can be controlled remotely over a network