C050 -- Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Analysis for Design Optimization of a Pharmaceutical Cleanroom

Pharmaceutical cleanrooms often require a high level of cleanliness to maintain the aseptic environment. The intuition based specifications of air changes per hour (ACH) often excessive and cannot address the required cleanliness levels in the critical zone of a cleanroom. This CFD study systematically evaluates the impact of ACH and the locations of supply diffusers on the airflow patterns and the resulting distribution of particles in the critical zone of a pharmaceutical cleanroom. These analyses indicate that the airflow patterns are mostly non-unidirectional and independent of the ACH levels. Increasing ACH levels in a cleanroom cannot ensure the required level of cleanliness in the critical zone of a cleanroom. The layout of supply diffusers plays a prominent role in determining the effectiveness of contaminant removal than the ACH. Placement of supply diffusers over the sources of contaminants (operators) helped improve the contaminant removal effectiveness and resulted in the reduced the particle concentration without increasing ACH.