Tech Talk – Unravelling the transmission of vertical outbreaks: Each drainage stack is an aerosol factory

All members of the HKU community and the general public are welcome to join!
Speaker: Professor Yuguo Li, Chair Professor of Building Environment, Department of Mechanical Engineering, HKU
Date: 20th January 2022 (Thursday)
Time: 4:30pm
Register now!
About the Tech Talk
Speaker: Professor Yuguo Li, Chair Professor of Building Environment, Department of Mechanical Engineering, HKU           
Mode: On-site and zoom
Moderator: Professor Dennis Y.C. Leung, Professor, Head of Department of Mechanical Engineering, HKU  
Date: 20th January 2022 (Thursday)
Time: 4:30pm 
Venue: Tam Wing Fan Innovation Wing Two (G/F, Run Run Shaw Building, HKU) or via ZOOM (TBC)
Language: English
More than 10 vertical outbreaks of COVID-19 have been observed in high-rise housing in Hong Kong. Together with the 2003 SARS Amoy Garden outbreak, these outbreaks suggest the roles of building drainage pipes in the transmission of infection, probably not limited to SARS and SARS-CoV-2. In collaboration with the Environmental Protection Department (EPD), a team led by Prof. Yuguo Li conducted field measurements in some of the infection venues and explore the transmission mechanisms. In this talk, Professor Yuguo Li, Chair Professor of Building Environment, shall demonstrate how his proposed chimney effect explains most of these infections, how the drainage pipe was poorly ventilated, what one can do to protect our family, and what society can do to provide healthy housing.
Registration
  • The tech talk “Unravelling the transmission of vertical outbreaks: Each drainage stack is an aerosol factory” will be organized in the Tam Wing Fan Innovation Wing Two (G/F, Run Run Shaw Building, HKU) on 20th January 2022 (Thursday), 4:30 pm.
  • Seats are limited.
  • Registrants on the waiting list will be notified of the arrangement after the registration deadline (with seating/free-standing/other arrangement)
  • Please read the Enhanced Covid-19 control measures at HKU for entering the HKU campus (https://covid19.hku.hk/announcements/all/2021/12/11231/)

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  • Introduction of speaker (Host: Moderator)

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  • Tech-talk (Host: speaker)

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  • Feedback (Host: Staff of Inno Wing)

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  • Free discussion and mingling

Recording of the Tech Talk
About the speaker

Professor Yuguo Li 

Professor Yuguo Li is a Chair Professor of Building Environment. His current research topics include city climate, environment studies of infection and indoor environment. Since early 2020, he has collaborated with WHO, Guangdong CDC, Hunan CDC and Jiangsu CDC and studied the transmission routes of SARS-CoV-2 in buildings. He is a member of the WHO IPC GDG and WHO Environment and Engineering Control Expert Advisory Panel (ECAP) for COVID-19. He also serves as Editor-in-Chief of Indoor Air.
Project images
Building drainage system for one high-rise building in Hong Kong where a vertical outbreak was observed.
Illustration of how the infectious aerosols generated during wastewater discharge are transported and leaked in a high-rise housing
HKU students conducted the tracer gas study in one building where a vertical outbreak of COVID-19 was observed.
More related information about this project

Unravelling How SARS-CoV-2 Has Been Transmitted

How is the emerging new SARS-CoV-Z transmitted? This has been one of the major challenges for effective intervention since the COVlD-19 pandemic emerged in late 2019.
Following our continuous environmental studies of infection since 2003 SARS epidemics, our team immediately explored our long-held hypothesis that short-range inhalation transmission might predominate the spread of most respiratory infection.

Gallery

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