What The Tech: How do air filter systems provide clean air?

No two air filter systems are the same. That makes sense, because if you want to supply clean air to an apart­ment, you’ll need different tech­nology than if you want to stop viruses spreading in an oper­ating room.

There is a basic distinc­tion between air exchange and air preser­va­tion, where the air isn’t processed in air preser­va­tion, but instead merely moved in the room. The third approach is air purifi­ca­tion, where pollu­tants and similar parti­cles are filtered out.
Air exchange systems are usually found in office and resi­den­tial build­ings. In modern systems, for example, sensors are used to measure para­me­ters such as carbon dioxide content, fine dust, and humidity. If a partic­ular value or the ratio of several values isn’t right, the system responds imme­di­ately and allows suffi­cient fresh air to flow into the room. Addi­tional air extrac­tion devices can also be used in kitchens, bath­rooms, and lava­to­ries if neces­sary to extract and exchange the air more quickly.

Other tech­nolo­gies do the exact oppo­site: they prevent air being exchanged and instead preserve the air. This makes sense as a tempo­rary measure in places like hospi­tals, to prevent infec­tious viruses from spreading in the building. For example, vacuum air filters with high-perfor­mance fans work to prevent viruses from escaping. These portable air filter systems can be used in many enclosed rooms. If they are powerful enough, they can also be used in open spaces. This prevents air cont­a­m­i­nated with viruses from flowing into adja­cent rooms.

But often it isn’t enough to simply move the air or keep it in place. In many situ­a­tions, it’s impor­tant to actively remove pollu­tants from the air or disin­fect it.

Clean air in rooms can be provided in many different ways. The most impor­tant thing is making sure it’s actu­ally done.