Air Filters

About Air Filters and Air Filter Manufacturers Including: Air Cleaner Filters, Carbon Air Filters, Electrostatic Filters, Foam Filters & HEPA Air Filters.

Air filters are designed by air filter manufacturers to filter and remove a range of contaminants from the air, including molds, gases, dirt and odors. There are specific filters available for different needs, for not all filters are designed to remove the same particles. Air filter manufacturers use various materials. For example, fabrics include gauze, fibers such as polyester and metals such as stainless steel. Sometimes electric and chemical reactions within the filter itself help attract and remove harmful elements from the air. Filter efficiency is determined by a few different factors: the size of the filter fibers, the density of the fibers in the filter and the velocity of the air that moves through the filter.
 
Air filters are largely used in home or commercial heating ventilation and air conditioning systems (HVAC). A HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filter is an example of a specific style of filter used in HVAC systems. A HEPA filter is mainly used to remove small particulates such as allergens and other common irritants from the air. The automobile industry uses air filters extensively in vehicles to help promote engine hygiene. Some domestic and industrial appliances house their own internal air filters to increase air quality. Clean air within individual machines ensures longer life to the units. Examples of these types of air filters are found in vacuum cleaners and humidifiers.
 
Air filter manufacturers create their products to protect machines like cars and air conditioners from damage and premature breakdown, and are also made to be beneficial to living creatures. The more researchers learn about harmful particles and substances that exist in the air, the more air filters play an important part in society’s long-term health. Strict air quality guidelines in many government and industrial circles make the use and continued innovation of air filters essential. Particularly beneficial is the use of air filters in domestic environments in which there are pets or excessive mold, mildew and dust that bring on allergic symptoms. Air filters help clean the air and remove these allergy-causing particulates, thus allowing home-owners and their families to breathe easier.
 
For the most part, air filters that deal with large particles and high velocities have large filter fibers, and likewise, air filters that deal with small particles and low velocities have small filter fibers. To ensure that an air filter will work properly in its intended application, make sure that the design, density of media and fibers and possible adhesive are taken into account before purchase. Air filters are generally able to function very well, as long as they handle the right kind of particulate for their design. Some will even outlast their intended replacement date and will provide years of reliable performance and cleaner air.

Air Filter and Air Filter Manufacturers Images Provided by Precision Filtration Products

Types of Air Filters

• Air cleaner filters remove a range contaminants from the air.
  
• Automobile intake filters are air filters that can handle rapid movement of air through a confined space. Automobile intake filters are often made of fibrous materials that allow the air to flow as freely as possible, yet capture essential contaminants.
  
• Antimicrobial air filters are filters that are treated with an antimicrobial agent, which prevents growth on the filter media.
  
• Carbon filters use carbon, a natural, non-metallic material that is very effective for removing gases and odors. Also called "active" or "activated carbon filters," these filters are particularly suitable for removing chemicals from the air, because carbon can absorb up to 60% of its own weight in gas.
  
• Cartridge filters have various components with different temperature limits and are used in applications that need a temperature resistant material.
  
• Compressed air filters are used in conjunction with a compressed air system. These systems are often utilized in workshops and warehouses in which high pressure air is used as a cleaning and dust removal tool.
  
• Electrostatic filters work by charging the dust particles in the air, which attracts them to the metal plates in the filter.
  
• HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filters were originally designed to prevent discharge of radioactive particles from nuclear reactor facility exhausts. These filters are now widely used in industrial settings because of their high efficiency of capturing a wide range of air contaminants.
  
• HVAC filters are filters that are used in an industrial or domestic heating ventilation or air conditioning system.
  
• Foam filters are made up of tiny interlocking cells that trap and distribute dirt particles throughout the entire volume of the foam. Foam filters are often used in automobile intake systems.
  
• Gas phase absorbers are used to filter the air from hazardous gasses.
  
• Grease filters attract grease laden air away from heat sources, such as commercial ovens. Grease filters are often made of stainless steel.
  
• Panel filters are used in spray booths to remove waste paint and dust particles from the workspace.
  
• Pleated filters are filters that are folded to allow for more surface area to be exposed within a smaller area of a filter frame.

Air Filter Terms

Adsorption – The retention of gas, liquid or solid on a surface due to positive interaction/attraction between the surface and the molecules of the adsorbed material.
 
Air Borne – A term that refers to any particles or substances floating in the air.
 
Air Stream – A current of air.
 
Allergen – A normal substance that causes an acute defensive reaction in a person’s immune system.
 
Arrestance – An air filter’s ability to remove synthetic dust from the air during a test.
 
Backpressure – A backward surge of pressure from downstream to upstream of an air filter. Backpressure can be the result of closing a valve or air entrapped in a liquid system.

Certified Energy Manager (CEM) – International professional designation available through training and testing by the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE).

CFC (Chlorofluorocarbon) – Family of chemicals used as refrigerants, being tightly regulated and phased out of production due to stratospheric ozone depletion potential. Examples: R-11, R-12, R-113, R-114, R-115.
 
Containment – The prevention of an agent from being transmitted from one point to another.
 
Contamination – An unwanted intrusion, such as harmful airborne particles.
 
Decontamination – The removal of unwanted airborne particles to neutralize the air.
 
Filter Medium – The permeable material that removes particles from a substance being filtered.
 
Filter Penetration – Particles passing through an air filter without being removed from the air stream.
 
Filtrate – The product that is filtered.
 
Indoor Air Quality – A term that refers to the amount of pollutants in the air within a confined space.
 
Ionizer – A filament, grid or porous body in an ion engine or other device that strips an electron from the outer shell of a neutral atom to form a positively charged ion.
 
Membrane – A continuous matrix with pores of defined size.
 
Negative Pressure – Pressure in an area that is responsible for the inflow of air.
 
Ozone – A molecule containing three atoms of oxygen. Ozone is harmful to both humans and plants at ground level, but is crucial in blocking ultraviolet radiation in the stratosphere.
 
Particulate – A very small solid suspended in air or water that can vary in size, shape, density and electrical charge.
 
Positive Pressure – Pressure in an area that is responsible for the outflow of air.
 
Pressure Drop – In the case of air filters, a measure of the resistance of air to flow through a filter.
 
Upstream – The direction that is in opposition to the airflow.