An Overview of the Airplanes Cabin Ventilation Problems and Possible Directions for Mitigation

The past pandemic situation underscored the need for advanced ventilation strategies to minimize cross-infection risk, ensuring thermal comfort and energy efficiency. Conventional aircraft Environmental Control Systems (ECS) prioritize space optimization and safety, leading to challenges in maintaining air quality and mitigating airborne disease spread. Personalized ventilation (PV) systems, providing clean air directly to each occupant's breathing zone, have emerged as a promising solution. These systems can potentially reduce airborne infection risk and improve air quality by limiting the mix of clean and polluted air. Various PV design approaches have been suggested, but more research is required to optimize these for aircrafts and assess their real-world effectiveness. Additionally, improved standards for infection control, effective monitoring of indoor air quality, and incentives to implement these measures are essential.