Preventive Measures to Consider against Indoor Air Pollution and Omicron

For ages, humans have been mercilessly exploiting nature and degrading the environment. Air quality has been steadily decreasing in recent decades. In metro cities, during the winter, the Air Quality Index (AQI) crosses dangerous levels, making it not only difficult to breathe but also deteriorating health. It is said that it never rains, but it pours, and we have observed this in recent years, along with pollution and an airborne virus that has taken many lives. The coronavirus is continually evolving and occasionally invading us with new strains. The Omicron version is the most recent in the series, and it has infected a large portion of the world's population. Experts and scientists debate about the intensity with which the new coronavirus strains may harm us. These things have made us realize the importance of fresh, infection-free, healthy air to breathe.

For many, it will be surprising to know that indoor air could be 5 or 6 times more polluted, mainly because of stagnant air without proper ventilation. There are different indoor and outdoor pollutants, carbon monoxide (CO), volatile organic compounds (VOC), biological pollutants, formaldehyde, pesticides and indoor particulate matter are the major indoor air pollutants, while nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), ozone (O3), and carbon monoxide (CO) are major outdoor pollutants. These poorly aerated buildings cause sick building syndrome and chronic symptoms like headaches, blocked and runny nose, dry and itchy skin, dry eyes, sore throat, cough or wheezing, rashes, tiredness, and difficulty concentrating. It is hazardous to live in such places, especially for elders and infants.

In modern offices and house, there are multiple sources of indoor pollutants and VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds), these sources keep on adding pollutants indoors and makes indoor air more harmful. As it is said, prevention is better than cure, but for indoor air pollution, precaution can’t improve air quality, but purifying the air to cure it, is the only solution.

In this era, a variety of air purifiers are available in the market with innovative features, and people are buying them as home appliances. The irony is that the consumers are not aware of the air purifiers they are buying. They look at the features and aesthetics of the product and if it matches their lifestyle, but they don’t look at the purification it offers. It has created a big gap between the need of the customers and what they are buying. Since air purifier is a scientific medical driven product and different technologies work against specific pollutants or microbes, proper consultation is a must to decide which product is best suited for personal needs.

There are two types of air purification technologies. In the Passive Air Purification tech, the air is channelized through filters or precipitators to capture or precipitate pollutants. While in the active air purification technology, cleaning agents are dispersed in the environment to clean it. This air purification technology is a much more effective and sophisticated technology, it not only clears air but purifies the surfaces as well.

The revolutionary air purification technologies, that should be considered while selecting air purifiers, are listed below.

PHI (Photohydroionization) Technology: This active air purification technology produces hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl, and other superoxide ions. It is very effective in neutralizing airborne microbes. It even neutralizes coronavirus and its variants like omicron in the air and on the surfaces.

Bipolar Ionization Technology: This active air purification technology produces both negatively and positively charged ions. These ions coagulate with charged pollutants, making them large enough to be captured in filters.

REME (Reflective Electro Magnetic Energy) Technology: This advanced technology is a combination of two active air purification technologies, PHI Technology and Bipolar Ionization. PHI produces ionized hydrogen peroxide that neutralizes microbes, and Bipolar Ionization produces charged ions, negative ions coagulate with positively charged pollutants, making them large enough to be filtered out.

HEPA Filters: It stands for high-efficiency particulate air filters. These filters remove at least 99.97% of particulates of 0.3 micrometer (μm) in diameter. Medical-grade HEPA filters have proven the ability in capturing the SARS‑CoV‑2.

Some of these technologies are specifically for the central air conditioning system, while others are for both central air management and standalone air purifier. Other factors are the coverage area and other conditions which determine the technology.  

In metro cities, where the air quality index frequently reaches hazardous levels, it is difficult to keep the indoor air of homes and offices clean without good filters. One needs to select prudently to decide on the air purification technology.

The best time to tackle the indoor air pollution situation is during the designing of buildings. Blueprints of the office and residential buildings should allow maximum ventilation and reserve adequate space to install an appropriate air management system. If redesigning and renovation of a poorly ventilated building is a constraint, then the alternate solution is - a standalone air purifier.

The correct approach for selecting an air purifier is first to understand what type of pollutant or microbe is to be eliminated, second is to know which is the most appropriate technology to address the issue and third one is to evaluate other factors or constraints of the selected technology.

If the goal is to eliminate pollution and particulate matter, then an air purifier with a good quality HEPA filter can work. If VOCs are additional issues, an air purifier with an activated carbon filter or Bipolar Ionization will be a good option. To neutralize microbes like Omicron, PHI technology is the best option. And for the combination of all three, air purifiers based on the REME technology will be an appropriate solution.