An air ionizer is a device that is intended to purify the air in a room by electrically charging the air molecules.
Instead of using fans and filters to
purify the air, an air ionizer uses ions to remove microscopic particles from the air. An air ionizer makes the air in a room healthier for people who are suffering from asthma, allergies, impaired immunity or respiratory ailments because fewer allergens circulate into the lungs. Ions Bond to Particles Air ionizers rely on the chemical properties of particles. An ion is just a particle that is charged, either negatively or positively. Air ionizers, which can be tabletop or standalone units, create negative ions using electricity. Opposites attract, so the negative ions flood the room and seek out positively charged particles, such as dust, bacteria, pollen, smoke and many other allergens. The negative ions and positively charged particles bond together. This creates dirt particles that are too heavy to keep floating around in the air, so they fall to the ground and can be cleaned by normal means. Some particles might fall onto other surfaces in the room, such as furniture, television screens or shelves, and can be cleaned off by dusting or wiping those surfaces. Ads by Google PureZone Air Purifier High Quality Air Purifier at an Resonable Rates. Call 9811233395. AtlantaHealthCare.in/AirPurifier GIS Microbe Shield Control bacteria, mold, and algae Unique technology. Global support. www.aegismicrobeshield.com variovac Zentralstaubsauger Made in Germany Exclusives VIP System www.variovac.com Air Cleaner Luftreiniger for mist and aerosol particles fr Nebel- und Aerosolpartikel www.reven.de Ozone Environmental Tech. The Ultimate Odor Eliminator Affordable, Reliable, & Easy to Use www.uvonair.com Ozone Most particles near the ground are positively charged. Natural phenomena, such as lightning or waterfalls, generate negative ions and ozone. This creates a "fresh" smell that a person might encounter during an electrical storm or near white rapids on a river. Ozone is a naturally occurring gas related to oxygen. Building insulation interferes with atmospheric air circulation, so an air ionizer seeks to compensate for this disequilibrium. Outdoor pollutants often get a lot of attention because they can cause health hazards. Indoor air pollution gets less attention but also is a serious problem. Dust and mold collects inside heating and air conditioning ducts, and the higher humidity indoors allows bacteria to thrive. An air ionizer addresses these indoor sources of pollution and odor. The ozone that is created when negative ions are generated battles pollution by breaking it down into smaller, harmless components; makes it more difficult for germs to grow; and deodorizes as well. Advantages Air ionizers conserve power and run silently, unlike fan-driven air purifiers. Another advantage over other purifiers is that no parts need regular replacement, because there are no physical filters that get dirty. Even though most air ionizers don't have motorized fans, the ionization creates a faint breeze that helps distribute the ions throughout a room. Some ionizers are outfitted with screens that catch the particles of dust as they fall to the ground.
Active Air Cleaning Methods(top) Technologies which fall into this category perform the air cleaning operation throughout the open air of the room or facility rather than within the physical enclosure of the air cleaner. Negative Ion Generators(top) Most people have experienced the phenomenon of static electricity when rubbing their feet on carpet and obtaining a light electrical shock by touching a metal object. But most people are not aware that static electrical charges are continuously being produced as the air circulates in a room and rubs against the surfaces of the room such as the walls, ceiling, and floors. The walls, ceiling, and floor of the room are literally loaded with millions of these electrical charges. The materials used in modern construction of the walls, ceiling, and floors generally cause these electrical charges to be positive. What does this have to do with cleaning the air? Well, like charged particles repel one another. When a particulate such as smoke, pollen, dust, mold spore, bacterium, or large organic molecule comes in contact with the surfaces of the room, it also becomes positively charged. The result is that these particles remain dispersed and suspended in the air you breath by static electrical forces. The particles are unable to precipitate out of the air. Solution: neutralize the static charge in the room so that these particles may fall out of the air to the floor. Negative ion generators do just that by emitting into the room large amounts of negatively charged particles which circulate in the room and neutralize the existing positively charged pollutant particles and room surfaces. The reduction of the positive static electrical forces causes pollutants to fall out of the air resulting in clean fresh air for breathing. In addition to obtaining clean breathable air it has been shown that there are additional health benefits to balancing the indoor electrical charge. Click Here - for more benefits. Negative ion generators work well but are limited in their ability to remove small pollutant gas molecules from the air. Even when there is no electrical charge very small particles approaching the size of gas molecules will remain suspended by the constant collisions with other gas molecules called Brownian motion. The primary drawback to this air cleaning technology is that it usually takes longer to experience an improvement in air quality after activating the machine and particles not only fall to the floor but they have a tendency to migrate toward the surfaces of the room and adhere to them. This may cause slight discoloration of walls, ceiling, and accessories over a long period of time. Negative ion generators sometimes use a device to produce the negative ions called an ionizer. An ionizer will produce negative ions but it also produces ozone as a by-product. We discuss ozone in the next section. It is possible to create negative ions without producing ozone. Click Here - to see ceiling fans that act as air cleaners (passive and active methods). Ozone Generators(top) Ozone, sometimes called activated oxygen, is a form of oxygen with three oxygen atoms instead of two. It is a very strong oxidizer and is unstable. Every twenty minutes half the ozone in the air naturally decays resulting in half the original level of ozone. For this reason, when ozone is used for air cleaning it must be continuously produced to maintain a sufficient quantity in the air to achieve a desired air cleaning result. How does ozone clean the air? Ozone generators emit ozone into the room where it circulates and chemically reacts with pollutants in the air. In most cases, the chemical reactions result in end products of oxygen, carbon dioxide, and water molecules, but there are no guarantees. It is possible that certain chemical reactions could actually produce toxic substances. In fact, ozone is toxic and hazardous if improperly used. The U.S. federal government has set safe limits for exposure to ozone and ozone generator manufacturers have calibrated their ozone generating products at the factories to provide safe exposure levels. Most consumer oriented ozone generating machines do not have ozone sensors that self regulate the ozone output of the machines because of the excessive cost. Therefore, manufacturers generally designate that a particular model ozone generator be used in a certain size room so the level of ozone will not exceed safe limits. If the consumer ignores the manufacturers recommendation and uses the ozone generator in a room smaller than intended by the manufacturer, the consumer could be exposing themselves, family, friends, and employees to hazardous ozone levels. The use of ozone is a controversial subject and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has enlisted technical staff at a number of federal agencies to provide scientific data and advice on this subject. In general, the E.P.A. does not recommend ozone for air cleaning in habitated areas.
In fa ct , th e e vi d e n c e indicates that ozone has little air cleaning influence when used at safe levels. Ozone is the only air cleaning method which has the ability to attack pollutants which are not airborne. Ozone is not recommended for people with allergies, asthma, or chemical sensitivities.
Q1: Are there any detrimental effects of having too much ozone in the home? A1: According to the EPA; ( http://es.epa.gov/techinfo/facts/ozone3.html ) * When inhaled, ozone can damage the lungs. * Relatively low amounts of ozone can cause chest pain, coughing, nausea, throat irritation, and congestion. It may also worsen bronchitis, heart disease, emphysema, and asthma. * Healthy people as well as those with respiratory problems, experience breathing problems when exposed to ozone. Q2: What are considered safe limits? A2: According to the EPA; ( http://www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/ozonegen.html#TOC ) Ozone Levels (ppm) 0.003 - 0.015 Odor Detecting Range for Humans 0.005 - 0.01 Heavy forest Country air 0.02 - 0.05 Outdoor air After a Lightning Storm 0.02 90% Reduction of Indoor airborne Bacteria 0.05 U.S. FDA Limit for Medical Devices 0.04 U.S. OSHA Limit for Indoor Air 0.12 U.S. EPA Limit for City Air 1.0 Human Tolerance Level What is a PPM? PPM = Parts per Million 1 ppm = 1 inch in 16 miles 1 ppm = 1 minute in 2 years 1 ppm = 1 penny in $10,000 Ozone Health Effects and Standards Health Effects Risk Factors Health Standards* Potential risk of experiencing:
Decreases in lung function
Aggravation of asthma
Throat irritation and cough
Chest pain and shortness of breath
Inflammation of lung tissue
Higher susceptibility to respiratory infection Factors expected to increase risk and severity of health effects are:
Increase in ozone air concentration
Greater duration of exposure for some health effects
Activities that raise the breathing rate (e.g., exercise)
Certain pre-existing lung diseases (e.g., asthma) The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires ozone output of indoor medical devices to be no more than 0.05 ppm.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires that workers not be exposed to an average concentration of more than 0.10 ppm for 8 hours.
The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recommends an upper limit of 0.10 ppm, not to be exceeded at any time.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)s National Ambient Air Quality Standard for ozone is a maximum 8 hour average outdoor concentration of 0.08 ppm.
(* ppm = parts per million) Q3: How does one determine the levels in the home? A3: According to the EPA; ( http://www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/ozonegen.html#why is it difficult to control ozone exposure with an ozone generator ) The ability to detect ozone by smell varies considerably from person to person, and ones ability to smell ozone rapidly deteriorates in the presence of ozone. While the smell of ozone may indicate that the concentration is too high, lack of odor does not guarantee that levels are safe. At least one manufacturer is offering units with an ozone sensor that turns the ozone generator on and off with the intent of maintaining ozone concentrations in the space below health standards. EPA is currently evaluating the effectiveness and reliability of these sensors, and plans to conduct further research to improve societys understanding of ozone chemistry indoors. EPA will report its findings as the results of this research become available. For more information on ozone see our air quality links page. Choosing the proper number of Active Air Cleaners for your Application(top) G e n e r a l l y
a c tive air cleaners are factory rated for a certain size area (with 8 foot ceilings). However, when more than one level is involved such as a two story home, it is necessary to have at least one machine on each level. This is true even though a single machine may be rated high enough to clean the air in the entire area encompassed by both floors of the home. The actual coverage of active air cleaner technology may vary depending on the degree of pollution, space configuration and internal air flow. Dust Fire and Explosion Hazards(top) Under certain conditions dust from materials may be a fire or explosion hazard. Dust Minimum Ignition Temperature (Cloud) Degrees C Minimum Explosible Concentration mg/litre Charcoal 530 140 Citrus Peel 500 60 Coffee, instant 410 280 Cornstarch 390 40 Fumaric acid 520 85 Magnesium 560 30 Milk, skimmed 490 50 Pyrethrum 460 100 Wheat flour 380 50 Wood, dust 450 20 For instance, a manufacturing operation which is deburring aluminum and creating aluminum dust must meet National Fire Protection Code NFPA 484, Standard for Combustible Metals, Metal Powders, and Metal Dusts. In the case of aluminum, NFP 651 basically states that the air cleaning equipment must be dedicated to aluminum dust, the air cleaner(s) must be mounted outdoors, and the air cleaner must be supplied with an explosion cover in addition to other details. Risks for dust explosions (Video) What causes dust explosions? An approved dust collector when used with optional explosion cover Additional codes which may apply to your facility. Primer on Spontaneous Heating and Pyrophoricity U.S. Department of Energy DOE-HDBK-1081-94 Reduction of Airborne Heavy Metals (top) By regulation, a HEPA quality air filtration system must be implemented to protect against airborne heavy metals. Heavy metals generally include: Cadmium Berylium Lead Zinc, usually from galvanized metal Mercury Noise Figures The following chart is helpful to compare noise figures for machines listed on this site. dB 140 . - Threshold of pain
- Siren at 100 feet 130 - Jet plane at 50 feet
.. 120 - Auto horn at 3 feet or Rock & Roll bar
. 110 - Chain Saw
. 100 - Heavy city traffic
- Rotary mower 90
When comparing noise measurements, be
. 80 - Inside a car at 50 m.p.h. or inside a busy office
. 70 - Vacuum cleaner
. 60 - Normal speech
. 50 - Private office
- Living room, suburban area 40
.
- Soft whisper 30
.
- Bedroom at night 20
certain that the measurements were all made with the microphone in the exhaust and placed the same distance from the air purifier in each case. Noise measurements made in a regular room will be higher than noise measurements made in a anechoic chamber (special room with material on the walls to absorb sound) because the noise measurements in a regular room will contain a noise component due to reflections of sound from the walls. Also, keep in mind that sound level measurements generally do not take into consideration the frequency spectrum of the sound. It is possible for the noise from a machine which has a lower sound level to be more annoying than the noise of a machine with a higher sound level because of the distribution of the sound frequencies. A change of 3dB represents a factor of 2 difference in the level of noise.
Chemical, Biological, & Radiological Protective Measures FEMA reference Manual to Mitigate Potential Terrorist Attacks Against Buildings see chapter 5 of above document NIOSH - Filtration and Air-Cleaning Systems to Protect Building Environments from Airborne Chemical, Biological, or Radiological Attacks Radon Gas Methods for removing radon gas