Talking Air Filtration

⁠Dr. Jordan Clark's presentation⁠.

For detailed show notes, read below and use the timestamps to navigate the episode:

[2:08] Dr. Clark describes the engineering controls for air filtration in buildings. Prescribed ventilation rates and filter rates mean releasing quantities of air and waiting for feedback. We don’t have performance-based metrics or real-time feedback to avoid high costs of money and energy. An aging electrical infrastructure can’t keep up with grid peak times in buildings across all sectors and homes. 

[5:07] Dr. Clark examines the evolution of prescribed air rates within Standard 62 over time from an ASHVE article. In the late 19th century, the germ theory was developed, starting the hygiene revolution that influenced the implementation of natural air ventilation. In the middle of the 20th century, central air conditioning and heating were adopted and costly.

The energy crisis at the beginning of the 1980s caused the ventilation rate to decrease. Now, the ventilation rate is prescribed per person per floor area. What we should expect in the future post-pandemic is still ambiguous. One idea is to treat buildings like hospitals to reduce the

transmission of viruses. We require a reevaluation of ventilation rates and consumption of energy.

[9:39] Dr. Clark reviews the US Department of Energy's depiction of a grid-interactive, efficient building of the future. However, there is no mention of air quality, and that is what Dr. Clark is working on.

[10:38] The first step to getting that data is using the hardware to measure quality in real-time.

Air quality sensors constantly evolve, but the current focus is on low-cost particle sensors, which cost about $1,000 USD. Dr. Clark reviews the anatomy of this device.

[15:15] Dr. Clark describes his performance testing as field testing with naturally occurring particle sources like gravel roads and highways. Other sources were created in the form of essential home functions like cooking. A comparison of devices and measured the sensor detection of events and if the sensor can return to baseline after

an event. Other tasks included quantitating exposure to events, averaging times of performance, determining the functional range for sensors, and determining correlation and linearity among models.

[23:25] Sensor performance based on sources is evaluated and found to be insensitive to building temperature. Further analysis showed that this temperature defect was a light and optical defect. Sensors are, however, significantly sensitive to humidity. Dr. Clark expands on performance as a function of size, which was evaluated to show calibration for a specific particle size. His takeaways from his research and literature help make predictions on the drift or long-term changes in performance.

[31:11] Dr. Clark concludes with gas sensors and total volatile organic compound (TVOC) detection. A total VOC sensor in low-cost particle sensor devices has limitations compared to a colorimetric Formaldehyde Sensor. The predictive abilities examined using machine learning and low-cost sensors didn't lead to any concrete conclusions.

 [36:08 ] Q & A session with Dr. Clark.

Review the slides: ⁠https://amped.egnyte.com/dl/LEPxPrUWAK⁠

For detailed show notes, read below and use the timestamps to navigate the episode: 

[2:01] David describes the airplane operating environment and how an environmental control system has multiple functions, such as maintaining cabin pressure anti-icing systems, cargo heat, and ventilation. 

[3:00] David describes how an ECS system continuously circulates outside air when it enters the engine and into a mixing chamber, where it is mixed with recirculated air. This 50/50 mix is distributed to the cabin and exits the airplane through valves.  

[4:33] David begins his review of the history of air filtration and advancements in aircraft with the Boeing Stratoliner, the first aircraft to implement air recirculation in 1945. After that, NASA research led to the application of HEPA filters for recirculated air, allowing for less fuel waste without compromising the quality of the cabin air. David Space participated in this research in 2002 and expanded on carbon air purification and filter capture methods for HEPA research in 2015 at the Lawrence Berkeley National Labs.  

[7:28] David Space analyzes a graph comparing airplane filtration to filtration in other modes of transportation and in environments such as hospitals and office buildings.  

[8:18] What do the latest statistics show on the spread of disease? The industry was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic; international flights dropped by 75% in 2019, and few reports on the spread of COVID during flights were available. 

[9:50] The Department of Defense used United Airlines for an eight-day study with four days on the ground and four days in flight. Mannequins released particles in the air with simulated coughing and breathing mechanisms. Decay, also known as how soon the particles leave the cabin, occurred much quicker due to a higher air exchange rate. 

[15:21] David compares the ASHRAE 1262 in-flight research to another study he was a part of with American Airlines on the factors that affect comfort for passengers while in flight. They took this data to the Technical University of Denmark for more human subject research on air quality. They found that air purification could raise humidity and lower gaseous contaminants. David’s research continues at Rutgers to find that bio effluents are the primary contaminant due to the high density of people. 

[21:17] David presented actual measurements collected during flights across the Boeing fleet, indicating that the 787 has lower volatile organic compounds. The FAA adopted prescriptive regulations for ventilation systems, but David believes performance-based regulations would be better. He suggested implementing filtration systems to handle particulate matter and gaseous contaminants, which would improve passenger comfort and reduce engine emissions.

NAFA recently published the Best Practices and Guidelines document, Filtration for Continuing Care Retirement Communities.

Patrick Rosenthal, CAFS (lead author of this NAFA Guideline) will educate HVAC and air filtration professionals on what facility managers need to know about clean air in continuing care retirement communities.

Download 2023 Best Practices and Guidelines Webinar Filtration for Continuing Care Retirement Communities Slide Deck

Download Filtration for Continuing Care Retirement Communities Best Practices and Guideline

About NAFA Air Filtration Best Practice Guidelines:
What’s the difference between ASHRAE has Standard 52.2 and NAFA’s Best Practices and Guidelines?

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) has minimum standards for air filtration.

Organizations like the National Air Filtration Association (NAFA) go beyond these minimum standards. NAFA publishes best practices and guidelines for several facility applications based on the experience and expertise of their membership, as well as current mandates and research provided by governmental and scientific communities.

HVAC and air filtration professionals should use NAFA’s Best Practices and Guidelines as a tool to educate their clients on how to protect their facilities’ occupants.

Dr. Joseph G. Allen is an associate professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and co-author of Healthy Buildings: How Indoor Spaces Drive Performance and Productivity.

Dr. Allen directs the Healthy Buildings program at Harvard, where he created ‘the 9 Foundations of a Healthy Building’. He is also a Certified Industrial Hygienist and Deputy Director of the Harvard Center for Education and Research on Occupational Health and Safety.

He has also been translating science to the business community and the general public, publishing more than 10 op-eds in leading newspapers and translating science into actionable tips for the public.

Enjoy his presentation and a lively Q&A!

For more information about the  National Air Filtration Association visit www.nafahq.org

Get a preview of Don Stanley's topic, "How to Stand Above Your Competition and Become the Voice of Trust in a Noisy, Busy World" presented at the National Air Filtration Association's Annual Conference on October 11-13, 2022.

How to Stand Above Your Competition and Become the Voice of Trust in a Noisy, Busy World
The world of sales and marketing has fundamentally shifted (and continues to shift) to favor the wants and needs of our customers. The companies who embrace this reality are winning the attention and business over their competitors. In this session you will learn to adjust and adapt to the demands of today’s customers who are dramatically more informed, less patient, and want more control of the sales process; and how to attract the attention of the right customers, to stand out from your competitors and become the trusted voice in the industry.

Visit: https://events.nafahq.org/

The following is the audio from a NAFA Webinar originally broadcast on October 21, 2020, titled, “Understanding ASHRAE’s Recommendations on Filtration and Disinfection for COVID19”

The webinar was presented by Kathleen Owen, Fellow of ASHRAE, and moderated by NAFA board member, Mike Corbat, CAFS.

You can find the link to the slides and the video recording here: https://www.nafahq.org/webinar-understanding-ashraes-recommendations-on-filtration-and-disinfection-for-covid19/ or visit www.nafahq.org. Look for the “covid 19” menu dropdown.

The recording started a bit late so you’ll join Mike’s intro of Kathleen in progress. Enjoy!

Will Denton, CAFS, NCTI, NCTII walks NAFA's Tony Veroeven through the Clean Air Award and its judging criteria. The Clean Air Award is a program designed to recognize facilities with applied best practices in air filtration. It's one of the most underused yet valuable member benefits the National Air Filtration Association offers!   Watch an interview with one of last year's Clean Air Awards, mentioned in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKOgm...  Visit https://www.nafahq.org/nafa-programs/... for more information!

Ascent’s transportation experts address the most common questions and areas of confusion that relate to freight class and NMFC rules. Listen  to refresh your knowledge of ever-changing shipping criteria and learn how Ascent can mitigate rate increases through its carrier negotiation capabilities. Visit this FAQ page for more information about the NMFC changes.

Listen to Tony Veroeven, Brooks Wise and Matt Lacy discuss and tear down the changes and how they might affect shippers.

Who Should Listen?

• VP of Operations
• President
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• Transportation Manager

For more information, visit: https://www.nafahq.org/covid-19-corona-virus-and-air-filtration-frequently-asked-questions-faqs/

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Whether you ship products domestically or internationally, consider how Ascent Global Logistics might be able to give you a second set of eyes on your logistics budgets and give your shipping coordinator more hours back in their week. Visit http://www.nafahq.org/ascentgloballogistics for more information. And let them know NAFA sent you!

You can indirectly support NAFA by doing business with our partners. Full disclosure, NAFA receives consideration when you do business with Ascent Global Logistics.

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