Railways have also raised the temperature of centralized (representational) AC
New Delhi:
Railways’ air-conditioned trains will now have theater-style fresh air pumped from its buses, replacing circulating air, which increases the risk of spreading infections, officials said.
The experiment, started with 15 pairs of air-conditioned trains driven by railways on Rajdhani roads since May 12, will be replicated in all AC trains as part of the national carrier’s preparations for post-COVID operations.
“The roof mounted air conditioning unit (RMPU) system of Indian Railways AC coaches replaces air more than 16 to 18 times an hour, just like in OTs,” officials said. .
Previously, these AC trains had air renewal six to eight times an hour and 80% of the air that was pushed into cars was recycled air, while 20% was fresh air.
However, with the increase in the number of air changes, energy consumption increased by 10 to 15%.
“This is the price to pay for passenger safety. This is the new standard. The operation of an air conditioner is to use recycled air to cool it faster. When we use air cool, cooling takes longer. So there is additional energy consumption, “said an officer.
The railways have also increased the temperature of the central air conditioning from 23 degrees to 25 degrees because passengers are no longer receiving laundry.
Authorities have stated that, on the advice of health experts, the railways have modified their non-AC coaches as isolation trainers to deal with mild coronavirus cases and have also followed ministry guidelines of Health to modify the air conditioning units on special Rajdhani trains. to make sure the disease doesn’t spread.
According to directives from the Ministry of Health, centralized air conditioning is acceptable provided that the complete air renewal inside an AC coach takes place at least 12 times per hour, officials said.
So far, only a study by Chinese researchers has concluded that the transmission of droplets is caused by air conditioning. However, few other studies have associated the use of CA with the spread of the coronavirus.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
