The new home and office essential is now an air purifier

Air purifiers used to be seasonal items that you would lug out of your storeroom when the skies turned hazy or your young ones got the sniffles. 

But given that we are living with a pandemic and with more of us staying home, an air purifier has become as essential as your fan or Wi-Fi router. 

The reason? Air purifiers, especially certified ones like the Philips Air Purifier 2000i and 3000i Series, are specially designed to improve indoor air quality by providing protection against viruses and aerosols, and reducing allergen triggers such as airborne particles, pollen, pet dander as well as hidden dirt and dust. 

“Exposure to allergens and pollutants is recognised as one of the most important risk factors for worsening asthma in children. In modern indoor spaces, allergens, viruses, bacteria and harmful gases may cause respiratory infections. In other cases, these can also result in various allergic symptoms such as sneezing, watery eyes, nasal congestion and a runny nose. Atopic diseases, often associated with common allergens, can also have a negative impact on quality of life,” says Dr Benjamin Loh, resident doctor at DTAP Clinic Group.

Fitted with industrial-grade NanoProtect high efficiency particulate air (Hepa) filters (which are also used in places like hospital operating theatres and industrial clean rooms), Philips’ air purifiers can remove up to 99.9 per cent of viruses and aerosols from the air, giving you and your family peace of mind amid the global health pandemic. This has also been tested for coronavirus (Sars-CoV-2)¹.

Mr Nicholas Lee, personal health leader at Philips Asean Pacific, shares more. 

How true is it that air purifiers can remove coronavirus particles from the air?

There is some evidence that some Covid-19 infections can be spread by exposure to the virus in the form of small droplets and particles that linger in the air for minutes or even hours. 

Philips air purifiers remove up to 99.9 per cent of viruses and aerosols from the air². This has also been tested for the new coronavirus (Sars-CoV-2). The size of the Sars-CoV-2 virus is estimated to be between 50 and 140 nanometres. Philips Hepa filters can remove 99.97 per cent of particles that are as small as 0.003μm³ (equivalent to 3nm), which are smaller than the smallest known virus⁴, from the air which passes through the filter. Philips has also previously demonstrated via independent institute testing that its air purifiers can reduce the levels of influenza A (H1N1) virus aerosols by 99.9 per cent from the air passing through the filter⁵.

Why do we need air purifiers with HEPA filters? 

Hepa filters are used in hospital operating rooms and in industrial clean rooms as they are very effective at trapping microscopic particles as small as bacteria and viruses. Hepa filters are also safer and more effective than ultraviolet (UV) devices and ionising air cleaners. Why? UV radiation can be harmful to us and ionising air cleaners produce ozone, which is harmful to the environment. Combined with strong airflow measured as clean air delivery rate (CADR), it removes aerosols faster and better protects against aerosols⁶. Enjoy clean air in a 20 sq m room in just eight minutes with our new 3D air circulation system and 360 degree inlet.

How did you test the performance of Philips air purifiers against the H1N1 virus?

The Airmid Healthgroup testing laboratory in Dublin, Ireland, measured the effectiveness of Philips air purifiers against viruses. It created an aerosol of H1N1 influenza virus in a 28.5 cubic m test chamber and analysed the number of viruses in the test chamber atmosphere during the test. Airmid observed that the Philips air purifier reduced the amount of airborne H1N1 viruses by more than 99.9 per cent within 20 to 40 minutes, depending on the CADR of the tested model.

Is it possible for viruses trapped in the filter to spread? 

After the viruses are captured in the filter, they are naturally deactivated. Depending on the temperature of the surrounding environment, this can take between several minutes to a few hours. It is unlikely for the viruses to spread again from the filter but we recommend that consumers change the filter when it reaches the end of its lifetime⁷ for best results. Once the virus is captured by the filter, the virus will lose viability since there is no host cell inside the filter. Philips air purifiers inactivate/neutralise 99.9 per cent of viruses deposited on the HEPA filter within two hours⁸.     

Besides the Philips NanoProtect Hepa filters, what other innovations can we find in Philips air purifiers? 

AeraSense: a real-time, advanced, professional-grade gas and particle sensor that accurately identifies airborne pollutants, even those smaller than PM2.5.

Clean Home+ app: a free app that allows users to control their air purifiers anytime and anywhere, tracks indoor and outdoor air quality, and provides allergen management advice. You can also see the amount of pollutants filtered and how much life is left in your filter for easy maintenance. It is Siri and Alexa enabled. 

VitaShield Intelligent Purification System: an industry-leading, active filtration system that does not use chemicals and is highly effective in removing airborne allergens. The pre-filter catches dust and hair, followed by the activated charcoal filter that removes harmful gases and unpleasant odours. Finally, the NanoProtect HEPA filter captures ultra-fine particles as small as 0.003 microns.

Besides the home, where else can Philips air purifiers be used? 

As Philips air purifiers are developed and manufactured in compliance with all safety regulations and standards (IEC/EN 60335-1 IEC/EN 60335-2-65), they can be safely used in a wide range of indoor commercial environments, including offices, schools and clinics.

Visit the Philips e-store to find out more about the air purifiers.

¹Microbial Reduction Rate Test at external lab, in a test chamber contaminated with avian coronavirus (IBV) aerosols. An air purifier by itself does not protect against Covid-19, but can be part of plan to protect yourself and your family (US Environmental Protection Agency).

²Microbial Reduction Rate Test conducted at Airmid Healthgroup Limited tested in a 28.5 cubic metre test chamber contaminated with airborne influenza A (H1N1). An air purifier by itself does not protect against Covid-19 but can be part of a plan to protect yourself and your family by helping with ventilation and cleaning the air (US Environmental Protection Agency). 

³Tested with NaClaerosol by iUTA according to DIN71460-1.

⁴Supporting literature for the size of coronavirus [// Ref source: s Vargaet al. The Lancet 2020, Vol 395, May 30, e100 Dimension of SARS-CoV-2: 60 -140 nanometer].

⁵Comparison between Philips HEPA filters with HEPA H13 / H14 filters.

⁶Comparison between Philips HEPA filters with HEPA H13 / H14 filters.

⁷Recommended lifetime of 36 months is a theoretical calculation based on the average regional annual outdoor airborne particle level, purifier running at auto mode for 16 hours per day.

⁸Tested for the H1N1 virus at the Guangzhou Institute of Microbiology according to ISO18184-2019.

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