Air Cleaning Performance of a Novel Electrostatic Air Purifier Using an Activated Carbon Fiber Filter for Passenger Cars

Abstract

We developed a novel electrostatic air purifier using a carbon fiber brush charger combined with a metallic collection rod and an activated carbon fiber (ACF) sheet to improve the indoor air quality of passenger vehicles. The ACF sheet was used to apply electrostatic forces to move charged particles toward a collection rod and simultaneously adsorb gas. The cylindrical air purifier (diameter: 100 mm, length: 190 mm) was composed of a conductive brush charger and an electrostatic collection rod for particle removal, as well as an ACF filter for gas removal. The flow rate of the device was approximately 209–360 L/min. The novel purifier was tested in a 1-m3 chamber with particles 0.3 μ m in diameter and three gases: ammonia, acetic acid, and acetaldehyde. The gas cleaning performance of the purifier was compared with that of a commercial purifier with a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter, activated carbon pellets, and alumina balls. The clean air delivery rate (CADR) of the novel electrostatic air cleaner was 0.219 m3/min, 35% higher than that of the HEPA filter. The CADRs of the ESP air cleaner for the test gases were 0.25, 0.19, and 0.19 m3/min, respectively, indicating that the novel ESP air cleaner reduced the gases 308%, 204%, and 327%, respectively, faster than the commercial purifier.