Healthy Facilities Institute (HFI) weighs in on IONaer technology: ionizing whole-building air without the ozone.
While EPA’s three steps to air quality still hold true in this order:
1. removing pollution sources,
2. ventilating, and
3. purifying the air…
IONaer, a Phoenix-AZ based company, has turned this approach on its ear (or nose).
The Claims:
An IONaer unit installed on the supply side of an HVAC system (past the physical media) introduces ions into the whole-building airstream via room registers, causing submicron to 1 micron + sized particles to clump and be removed by the HVAC’s media filter or be deposited on floors; but, most importantly, out of the airstream.
IONaer uses sensors to monitor indoor air quality (IAQ) activating the system as needed in-tandem with the HVAC unit.
Through its ozone capture system, ozone is prevented from entering the airstream in any meaningful amount (well below public health standards), and an ozone suppression mode captures ozone from other sources (e.g., smog, laser printers, etc.)
The Outcomes:
HFI, using independent Dylos 1100 and Foobot FBT0002100 sensors, finds these claims to be reasonable in the home environment tested. Air quality monitors quickly showed reductions in airborne particles and, over time, HVAC filters loaded rapidly – greater than normal use would explain – showing enhancement of the clumping and removal efficiency of the HVAC physical media.
The unit also controlled and reduced VOC levels, including ozone, lending credence to the claim that IONaer technology addresses both particles and gases. Information about the test, the test unit and our observations are available upon request.
Conclusion:
IONaer has successfully harnessed the power of ionization, apparently overcoming the ozone-production problem endemic to these technologies, to clean the indoor air in a manner that effectively utilizes existing HVAC systems.
More research is needed to further explore possibilities and limitations.
HFI does not endorse products.