How a table modulates the risk of airborne transmission between facing individuals

Abstract

Airborne transmission has been recognised as an important route of transmission for SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. While coughing and sneezing are major aerosol sources, asymptomatic transmission highlights the need to study other exhalation modes in social settings. Gathering around a table, a common scenario for human interactions, may influence airborne transmission by modifying the airflows. Here, we employ high-fidelity large-eddy simulations to investigate the effect of a table for periodic breathing conditions (Reynolds number Re ≈ 103–3 x 103, Froude number Fr ≈ 17–50) as well as during sudden, forceful exhalations at peak values of Re ≈ 1.2 x 104 and Fr ≈ 70, mimicking laughter. During downward exhalations, the distance between the source and the table defines a new length scale that constrains the natural spread of buoyant puffs and jets. The table limits forward particle transport but, in doing so, may increase particle concentrations reaching a recipient, raising transmission risks. Simulations of forceful exhalations, such as laughter, further show that the table acts as an inertial filter – intercepting medium-sized particles that would otherwise remain airborne. This introduces a cutoff size dependent on puff inertia, altering the resulting airborne particle size distribution.