Interpreting Air Cleaner Performance Data

ABSTRACT

The global COVID-19 pandemic has prompted widespread demand for air cleaning technologies aimed at reducing risks of airborne pathogen transmission inside buildings. The commercial landscape for air cleaning devices is complex, ranging from conventional technologies such as high-efficiency fibrous-media filters and ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) to a wide variety of electronic air cleaning technologies such as plasma generators, hydroxyl radical generators, ionizers, photocatalytic oxidizers and others. This article demonstrates some frequently prevalent issues in electronic air cleaner performance testing and reporting and proposes a path forward to meet research needs and improve test methods that could reduce the current uncertainty about the performance of electronic air cleaning technologies. It also provides tools to support practitioners and consumers in their decision-making regarding air cleaning technologies. Copyright 2022 ASHRAE.