How to reduce the hidden costs of using air filters

Air filters are air filtration devices, generally used in clean rooms, clean plants, laboratories, and clean rooms, or for dust control of electronic machinery and communication equipment.
There are primary filters, intermediate filters, high-efficiency filters, and sub-high-efficiency filters.
The various models have different standards and efficiency.

 
In pneumatic technology, air filters, pressure-reducing valves, and oil mist collectors are known as the three main pneumatic components.
To obtain a variety of functions these three air source treatment components are often assembled in a sequence called the pneumatic triplet.
They are used to purify and filter the air supply, to reduce pressure, and to provide lubrication.


The order of installation of the three components in the direction of the air intake is the air filter, pressure-reducing valve, and oil mist collector in that order.
The three parts are indispensable air source devices in most pneumatic systems, installed near the air equipment, is the last guarantee of compressed air quality, its design, and installation, in addition to ensuring the quality of the three parts themselves, but also consider space-saving, easy to operate and install, can be arbitrarily combined and other factors.

1、Filter selection

The most important task of the filter is to reduce particulate matter and pollutants in the indoor environment.
When developing an air filtration solution, it is important to select the correct filter.

The first step is to define the purification level, which can be achieved by referring to the ISO 16890 standard or Eurovent 4/23.
Once the requirements for the filtration class have been determined, the appropriate filtration solution can be selected.
It is therefore important to ensure that the entire filtration system is capable of meeting the filtration class requirements for particulate matter for the duration of its use.
The resistance and airflow are then optimized to reduce energy consumption.

It is well known that the majority of dangerous particles and pollutants indoors come from outdoors and the use of effective supply air filters can filter them out and stop them from entering the room.


2. Save energy without compromising on filtration efficiency

To keep the resistance of the different filter classes as low as possible and to save energy costs, the structural design of the filter is essential.
Increasing the filter area, choosing the right filter media, and optimizing the shape of the filter bag can reduce the resistance.

Tapered joints inside the filter bags prevent them from interacting to block the filter surface and further facilitate the flow of air, which also reduces energy consumption without affecting the efficiency of the filter.


Important things to consider:

1. Select a filter according to the required filtration level or requirements

2. Choose the filter with the lowest energy impact

All air filters can be classified from A+ to E, where A+ represents the lowest energy consumption and E the highest.

This classification gives the customer a better understanding of annual energy consumption, average efficiency, and minimum efficiency.
You can see that A+ filters help to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions.
Based on an extensive certification process, Eurovent-certified products must show the annual energy consumption (kWh/year) for each ISO efficiency class and are tested in an independent laboratory through a random sample of manufacturers.

3. Life Cycle Costs

Life Cycle Costs determine the cost to the customer for clean air use throughout the filter's life cycle.

4. Environmental impact on the filter life cycle

To get a full picture of how large the overall environmental impact is, a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) has therefore been designed.
This assesses the environmental impact of a product and aims to obtain the extent of the environmental impact throughout the life cycle of the product, from raw material extraction to manufacturing, use, and disposal management.
This includes all transport and energy consumption throughout the product's life cycle.

The life of the filter is critical to the environmental impact of the filter.
The energy used by fans to draw air through an air filter accounts for approximately 90% of the total climate impact of the filter.

Reducing the average resistance of an air filter is therefore the most important measure to reduce the environmental impact of a filter during its service phase, as it affects energy use.