A Look At the Technologies and Innovations That Benefit Us Now
If you want to see the progress that our country has made in controlling airborne infection rates and creating healthier indoor environments, start with the place where people are most vulnerable: the hospital.
A tour of a small or large hospital today reveals multiple interventions to protect patients, visitors, and staff. One primary source of protection is air filtration. Hospitals rely on commercial air filtration systems and products to prevent healthcare-acquired infection (HAIs).
Yet healthcare facilities aren’t the only sites that depend on commercial air filtration. Office buildings and schools have adopted measures to leverage this technology, and, on a more advanced level, industries that require cleanrooms, such as industrial production and pharmaceutical manufacturing, rely on air filtration as a baseline for safety.
In terms of indoor air quality (IAQ), our buildings are safer than ever, in an age where strains of infectious diseases become more difficult to treat, man-made air pollution remains at high levels, and our global climate changes.
Here are some of the biggest moments in the history of air filtration that gave birth to the highly effective technology we have today.
The Mask
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many Americans donned masks for the first time. However, you may know that masks have been a reliable air filtration device for centuries. You’ve likely seen the masks that plague doctors wore, their bird-beak-like protrusions stuffed with herbs, spices, and sponges soaked in vinegar, to protect them from diseased air.
By the turn of the 20th century, the modern take on the mask – a piece of fabric with two strings to secure it around the head – was widely adopted by healthcare workers and the general population during the Great Influenza outbreak (1918-1920).
The aim of the mask is simple: the use of fabric to block infectious particles from entering the respiratory system. This concept, although rudimentary in nature, is actually the foundation of the commercial air filtration system.
The Birth Of the HEPA Filter For Air Filtration
The high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter is a critical component for residential and commercial HVAC. These filters are used in small electronic devices, such as room purification systems and vacuums, and in sophisticated fan filter units found throughout industries with IAQ standards.
Consider the HEPA filter as a kind of mask for an indoor space. Woven fibers block air particles from entering through a HVAC system’s ductwork or, in portable units, unwanted particles are pulled into the unit to trap them in these fibers. These filters are able to filter out particles of .3 microns larger with a 99.99% success rate.
HEPA filters were first sold as a commercial product in the 1950s, after their invention at the Manhattan Project’s facilities to protect workers from radioactive materials during their quest for a nuclear arsenal.
Today, ultra-low particulate air filters (ULPA) filters are also available. ULPA filters feature higher-density fibers than HEPA filters, boasting a 99.97% success rate at filtering out particles no smaller than .12 microns.
The Founding Of the American Society For Heating, Refrigerating, and Air- Conditioning Engineers
When new technologies are introduced to protect our health and our assets, standardization isn’t far behind. The purpose of standardization is to create agreed-upon methods, processes, and benchmarks that promote and sustain quality. In the commercial HVAC world, that commitment comes from several important organizations, such as the American Society for Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). ASHRAE was founded with the purpose of gathering together professionals in the HVAC industry to share findings, experiences, and best practices, and to ensure everyone in the field could access this information. You can still read a summary of their first meeting on the ASHRAE website.
ASHRAE standards, technical resources, recommendations, conferences, and resources for continuing education are a guiding force that informs how we design, implement, maintain, and advance commercial air filtration systems today.
The Publication Of ASHRAE’s Updated Standard 62.1 and 62.2
ASHRAE Standard 62.1 was celebrated as a “leveling of the playing field” for indoor environments that don’t necessarily require, but can benefit from, better air quality. Introduced in the 1970s, “Ventilation and Acceptable Indoor Air Quality” explains the baseline protocols for improving IAQ across commercial and residential buildings.
Recently updated in 2022, Standards 62.1 and 62.2 provide specific guidance for facility leadership as they implement commercial air filtration interventions to achieve better IAQ results.
The 2022 update came at a critical time, as more and more facility teams have grown interested in an investment in IAQ. This interest is due to factors such as wildfire and ozone pollution, the recent pandemic, and new research on how air quality affects learning, productivity, and physical and mental health.
What’s Next In Commercial Air Filtration?
Although it may seem strange that the basic principles behind how we filter unwanted particulates out of buildings and bring filtered air in hasn’t really changed much over the years, this fact should actually be comforting.
Facilities know what works when it comes to indoor air quality. However, the technologies that enable the fundamental principles of commercial air filtration continue to build on the basics to enhance our safety in ingenious ways.
For example, engineers today can design and ship a complete ceiling system for an operating room that includes energy-efficient air filtration technology with both HEPA and ULPA filters, LED lighting, and equipment mounting. This all-in-one solution gives surgeons, staff, and patients the utmost protection and enables key capabilities with ease.
New and future commercial air filtration technology also includes:
- AI-driven predictive maintenance and IAQ monitoring.
- Connectivity to building management and automation systems.
- Integration of UV-C light and bipolar ionization with traditional air filtration methods.
- Further enhancements for energy efficiency and net-zero initiatives.
Yet still more groundbreaking technology will be available soon. To keep up with what’s next for this industry, bookmark these resources:
- ASHRAE
- The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI)
- Industry news from a leading U.S. manufacturer of commercial air filtration systems