Tracer Gas and Smoke Flow Visualization Assessment of the Impact of a Beverage Cart on Contaminant Dispersion in a Twin Aisle Aircraft Cabin

An experimental study was performed in a mockup of a Boeing 767 cabin section consisting of eleven rows with seven seats per row. The ventilation system for the mockup is constructed for actual aircraft components and includes linear diffusers that extend the full length of the mockup. Ventilation flow rates representative of an actual aircraft were used for all experiments. Seats in the mockup were occupied by thermal manikins to simulate passenger heat load. A motorized beverage cart traversed the length of the right aisle. Tracer gas and smoke visualization were used to determine the effect of the moving cart on transport of contaminants in the cabin. Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) tracer gas was injected at a constant flow rate at a location adjacent to the aisle until concentrations in the cabin reach steady-state. The concentrations of tracer gas displaced by the cart were measured at locations throughout the cabin using non-dispersive infrared sensors and compared with and without the beverage cart in motion. Smoke was injected at the same locations to visualize the cart wake and also the nature of the ventilation flows in the aircraft. While the impact of the moving cart is measurable and the effect of the wake pulling air along the aisle can be clearly seen, the relative impact compared to the transport via cabin air motion is small for most locations and is of short duration.