Special Issue on: Prevention and control of COVID-19 transmission in the indoor environment

The editors of the Indoor and Built Environment is cordially calling for papers for publication in the special issue on:

Prevention and control of COVID-19 transmission in the indoor environment

The current global pandemic of the 2019 novel coronavirus disease COVID-19 has caused a serious global concern about human respiratory health. Particularly, the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic is found to be closely related to the transmission of infectious particles between persons in indoor environments, which highlights the importance of implementing strict and effective measures to prevent and control the transmission of infectious disease. Measures for COVID-19 control should be established based on a clear understanding of transmission mechanisms and a full consideration of the context of use. The objective of this special issue is to explore potential measures for effective disease control in indoor environments, including homes, public buildings, hospitals, vehicles, etc. and to clarify their underlying mechanisms for mitigating the risk of the disease transmission. This special issue covers original research and review studies, including, but not limited to the following topics:

• Mechanisms of the generation of infectious droplets from occupant’s respiratory activities
• Aerodynamic behaviours of the novel coronavirus and its potentials for airborne transmission
• Viability of SARS-CoV-2 in indoor environment and its influencing factors
• Epidemiological studies on COVID-19 indoor transmission pathways
• Dispersion and propagation characteristics of exhaled droplets in indoor environment Intervention measures and their effect on prevention and control of the disease transmission in indoor environment
• Evaluation of the exposure and infection risk of airborne disease for occupants
• Proper design and operation of Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems as a control measure to reduce airborne disease transmission
• Disinfection and air cleaning methods and their effectiveness for indoor airborne infection control

Important Date:

Final acceptance deadline: May 31, 2021

 Submission Guidelines:

The Guidelines for Authors for submitting a manuscript can be found on the website of IBE (https://journals.sagepub.com/home/ibe). The authors are requested to tick on the special issue’s name “Control of COVID-19 transmission” in the submission system. All manuscripts will undergo a rigorous but accelerated peer review.

Guest editor:

Dr. Chunwen Xu

Associate Professor of China University of Petroleum, China

Operational Editor of IBE

E-mail: [email protected]

Prof Catherine Noakes

Professor of Environmental Engineering for Buildings

School of Civil Engineering

University of Leeds, UK.

Email:  [email protected]