Can air purifiers eliminate viruses?

The need for high-quality air purification is now more important than ever. It’s a well-known fact that air purifiers can help to enhance indoor air quality and improve respiratory health. But can they eliminate airborne viruses too? In this article we’ll take a closer look at air purifier technology to find out whether it can sufficiently eliminate can air purifiers eliminate viruses

How do air purifiers work?

Air purifiers help to clean the air through particle filtration and sanitization. Different types of air purifiers use different filters to sanitise the air. However, HEPA air purifiers are the most effective at trapping airborne particles. 

Can air purification eliminate airborne viruses?

Air purifiers with HEPA filters can filter ultrafine particles as small as 0.01 micron (10 nanometers). Airborne virus particles that are smaller than this will not be captured by a HEPA filter, but those 0.01 micron and larger can be removed from the air successfully.

Research shows that droplets from the respiratory activities (sneezing, coughing, breathing, speaking) of infected individuals can range from 0.05-50 microns in size. These particles contained viruses ranging between 0.02 and 0.3 microns in size, which means that they would also be filtered out by a HEPA air purifier. 

Air purifiers and COVID-19

COVID-19 can spread from person to person through respiratory droplets, as well as on contaminated surfaces. This means that the transmission of the virus could be reduced by proper air purification. 

Coronavirus particles are approximately  0.125 micron in diameter. This falls within the size- range that can be captured by HEPA air purifiers. 

It’s important to remember that HEPA filters can effectively capture 99.97% of airborne particles that are 0.01 micron or larger. As a result, they can’t eliminate airborne viruses completely, however, they can make a significant impact in reducing the number of infectious particles in the air. 

Types of air purifiers and their effectiveness against viruses

There are many different types of air purifier on the market these days. It’s vitally important to select the right option to suit your purification requirements.

To help, we’ve broken down the main types below and their effectiveness against viruses. 

HEPA air purifiers 

HEPA air purifiers are widely consider to be the most effective purification systems for removing minute particles, dust, pollen and pollutants from the air. 

They can effectively remove 99.97% of particles and microorganisms as small as 0.01 micron. Therefore, they can successfully eliminate viruses that fall within this size range.

UV light air purifiers 

UV air purification systems are design to kill viruses, bacteria and spores by exposing them to ultraviolet light. 

The effectiveness of the UV air purifier can vary between manufacturers, however, some claim to kill 99% off viruses and bacteria. 

Ionic air purifiers

These air purifiers work by emitting negative ions into the air. These ions then bond to particles in the air and help to eliminate them. 

They are not as effective as HEPA air purifiers when it comes to removing viruses and bacteria. However, they can effectively eliminate larger dust particles.

How can Mars Purifier help?

Our air purification systems combine all of the above technology to produce a medical grade air purifier that successfully and efficiently eliminates airborne viruses, including COVID-19. 

Our air purifiers are also ISO:14644 certified and feature a state-of-the-art 6-stage purification system to effectively sterilize the air in many high-risk spaces. 

Get in touch with our team today to learn more about how our Mars Purifier can help you.https://marspurifier.com/where-is-best-to-place-an-air-purifier-in-a-dentists-office/