You can beat pollutants, dirt and germs at home with the help of an air purifier. The primary purpose of having an air purifier is that it cleanses the air surrounding you. Whether inside or outside, you can be exposed to pollutants in the air. So, buying an air purifier should be at the top of your list. There are many types of air purifiers, but the best one is always the HEPA air purifier. Let’s learn a few things about HEPA filters.
What Is the HEPA Filter?
HEPA or the High-efficiency particulate filter can capture most of the particles like mould, pollen, bacteria, pet allergens and viruses. These filters were first invented in the 1940s. It was the year when scientists were progressing with the invention of the atomic bomb. These HEPA air filters are made from synthetic materials, similar to those utilized in quick-dry T-shirts.
What Is the HEPA Standard?
The HEPA filters trap tiny particles that can’t be seen with the naked eye and also the ones that are a threat to your health. The HEPA filter removes 99.97 per cent of the particles from the air. These particles are as small as 0.03 micrometres in size. To elaborate further, if there are 10000 particles, only three will pass through, and those three being 0.03 microns in diameter. Different types of particles or microns have various sizes. You will be able to easily remove some of the particles with the help of the vacuum, depending on their capacity. Some particles like pure oxygen, bacteria, car emissions, dust mites, etc., can be found in your home. Pure oxygen is 0.0005 microns, and spores are 3 to 40 microns, car emissions are 1 to 150 microns, dust mites are 1 to 10 microns, mould is 3 to 12 microns, and bacteria is 0.3 to 60 microns. You can find these HEPA filters in your HEPA air purifier. Additionally, these filters are also found in HVAC systems, cars and vacuums.
How Do HEPA Filters Work?
Many of them consider HEPA filters like a net. If there are particles that are smaller than the holes, it passes through the net. There are many ways in which a HEPA filter works. Let’s check the three methods.
Method One
Your hair is about 50 microns wide. One micron is comparatively smaller. But, some particles come across to be more than 1 micron wide. Now, these particles are undoubtedly large. When these large particles enter into the HEPA filters, they get stuck because the holes in the HEPA filter are too tiny, and the particles are enormous. Scientists called it ‘straining’ because particles get stuck in the middle of fibres.
Method Two
As mentioned earlier, some particles are smaller than 1 micron. Here, the size is being compared to the size of bacteria. There are gaps in the HEPA filter where the particles tend to fit properly. The problem occurs when these particles follow the air around a HEPA filter. And they can’t move quickly because they are quite heavy. The scientists call it ‘interception’ since the heavy particles get stuck.
Method Three
According to scientists, the ‘diffusion’ method is applied here. So what happens in this method? Tiny particles like the ones lesser than 0.3 microns fit effortlessly through HEPA filters. Since these particles do not fly in straight lines, they continuously fly in random zigzag patterns until they get stuck.
When purchasing air purifiers, it is better to buy a HEPA air purifier immediately as the pollutants will be removed from your house quickly. You can be assured that the air you breathe at your home will be clean, dirt-free and healthy.
Author:- Evelyn
