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Energy-Efficient Strategies for Mitigating Airborne Pathogens in Buildings—Building Stage-Based Sustainable Strategies

Author

Listed:
  • Nishant Raj Kapoor

    (Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, Ghaziabad 201002, India)

  • Aman Kumar

    (Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, Ghaziabad 201002, India
    Structural Engineering Department, CSIR-Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee 247667, India)

  • Ashok Kumar

    (Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, Ghaziabad 201002, India)

  • Harish Chandra Arora

    (Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, Ghaziabad 201002, India
    Structural Engineering Department, CSIR-Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee 247667, India)

  • Anuj Kumar

    (Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research, Ghaziabad 201002, India)

  • Sulakshya Gaur

    (Department of Civil Engineering, G H Raisoni College of Engineering, Nagpur 440016, India)

Abstract

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has had widespread global effects. The advent of novel variants of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, along with the spread of diverse airborne viruses across different geographical locations, has caused reflective apprehension on a global scale. This resurgence emphasises the critical importance of carefully constructed structures installed with efficient ventilation systems, including both natural and mechanical ventilation techniques, as well as mixed-mode ventilation approaches in buildings. Building engineering and architectural designs must go beyond traditional considerations of economics and structural durability in order to protect public health and well-being. To attain a high quality of life, it is necessary to prioritise sustainability, energy efficiency, and the provision of safe, high-quality indoor environments. Empirical scientific investigations underscore the pivotal role played by conducive indoor environments in averting the transmission of viral diseases such as COVID-19 and mitigating challenges associated with sick building syndrome, primarily stemming from suboptimal indoor air quality. This work provides a summary and a SWOT (strength, weakness, opportunities, and threat) analysis of strategies designed for engineers, architects, and other experts in the field to implement. These strategies are intended for integration into new constructions and the retrofitting of extant structures. Their overarching objective is the minimisation of viral transmission within indoor spaces, accomplished in an energy-efficient manner consonant with sustainable development objectives. The significance of these strategies lies in their ability to impact changes to national and international building codes and regulations, strengthening infrastructures against probable airborne viral threats. Encompassing both object-centric and subject-centric approaches, these strategies collectively furnish a holistic framework for mitigating the dissemination of pathogens, exemplified by the SARS-CoV-2 virus and similar airborne viruses, across diverse typologies of buildings.

Suggested Citation

  • Nishant Raj Kapoor & Aman Kumar & Ashok Kumar & Harish Chandra Arora & Anuj Kumar & Sulakshya Gaur, 2024. "Energy-Efficient Strategies for Mitigating Airborne Pathogens in Buildings—Building Stage-Based Sustainable Strategies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-22, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:2:p:516-:d:1314528
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mohammad Ajmal Nikjow & Li Liang & Xijing Qi & Samad Sepasgozar, 2021. "Engineering Procurement Construction in the Context of Belt and Road Infrastructure Projects in West Asia: A SWOT Analysis," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-17, February.
    2. Nishant Raj Kapoor & Ashok Kumar & Anuj Kumar & Dilovan Asaad Zebari & Krishna Kumar & Mazin Abed Mohammed & Alaa S. Al-Waisy & Marwan Ali Albahar, 2022. "Event-Specific Transmission Forecasting of SARS-CoV-2 in a Mixed-Mode Ventilated Office Room Using an ANN," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(24), pages 1-27, December.
    3. Dyani Lewis, 2021. "Superspreading drives the COVID pandemic — and could help to tame it," Nature, Nature, vol. 590(7847), pages 544-546, February.
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