Why You Need to Upgrade Your Industrial Air Filters
Air filters for OEM equipment and appliances are like medical face masks. They act as protection to remove particles from the air that can cause harm to people or critical equipment. The type of air filter you need and how it works depends on the application. So how do air filters work exactly?
No matter what the application, standard air filters all work in a similar way. They clean the air by passing it through a filter media that removes particles like dust, hair, pet fur, and dirt. They act as a sieve to capture particles in the filter media as air flows through it. The filter media’s fibers create a tortuous passage to airflow. Particles that are larger than the holes in the sieve get caught in the media or on the surface of the media preventing exhaust into the clean airstream.
As the filter is used and more and more particles get trapped within the dust and fibers and airflow gets further restricted. At first, this works in your favour, as there is less space for particles to get through. However, eventually this impedes the airflow which stops particles from being brought into the filter entirely. It’s at this point that you need to either clean the filter or change it, depending on the type of filter it is. If there is not enough airflow going through the filter, the particles won’t get inside the filter to get trapped by the fibers and will stay in the air.
Unlike standard air filters, APC manufactures custom designed air filters specific to your application. This ensures the air filter is designed to provide optimum filtration performance and service life. Depending on your application, filters, frames, and end caps can be manufactured in any shape and with a variety of materials, including paper, polyester, metal, and plywood.
Understanding How HEPA Filters Work
HEPA filters remove a minimum of 99.97% of 0.3-micron particles. HEPA filter media is traditionally made using micro-glass fibers but can also include sub-micron, wet laid glass and/or meltblown polypropylene electrostatically charged fibers arranged in non-woven format to capture fine particles more efficiently.
To do this, HEPA filters capture particles through three processes:
1. Interception – this occurs when a particle comes into close range of a fiber and sticks to it
2. Impaction – this occurs when a larger particle hits the fibers directly
3. Diffusion – as the smallest particles flow through the filter, they hit gas molecules and slow down. They are then able to stick to the fibers via interception or impaction.
These processes to catch dangerous air particles are more intricate than that of a standard air filter. HEPA filters are an essential requirement for environments requiring critical air filtration.
APC Designs and Manufactures Custom Air Filters
Understanding how air filters work is key for deciding which is right for your application.
Contact us today to learn more about APC’s custom air filters. If you have a filtration challenge, APC has the solution. We look forward to working with you.
1-888-689-1235
inquiry@apcfilters.com
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