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A Different Technology - Polarizing vs. Ionizing

Polarization is very different from ionization,” explains Duke Wiser, president of Dynamic Air Quality Solutions, the leader in manufacturing products using polarized-media technology. “A polarized field does not produce any ozone, which occurs with ionizing. And polarized molecules are not charged and therefore less apt to collect where you don’t want them to. By contrast, ionized particles have either a positive or negative charge and are attracted to oppositely charged surfaces such as collector plates in precipitating air cleaners. But charged particles can also collect on walls, ductwork, and clothes.

Polarized particles are bi-polar which means that each molecule charge (at one end) and a negative charge (at the other end). Polarized particles are attracted to the other polarized particles that tend to float free and are recirculated through an HVAC system. Polarizing produces no Ozone. Polarized media air cleaners increase in efficiency as the media loads. Ionized particles are either positively charged or negatively charged. An ionized particle is attracted to an oppositely charged surface such as a collector plate and precipitating air cleaner. Ionizing can produce Ozone as a by-product. Precipitating air cleaners lose efficiency as Ionizing wires and collecting plate surfaces get dirty.

Polarized-media air cleaners do an excellent job of removing sub-micron (less than 1 micron in size) particles and without the efficiency loss associated with precipitating electronic air cleaners. The carbon center screens that are used in Dynamic air cleaners also trap odors and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). By the nature of polarization technology, the air cleaner’s effectiveness is best measured by assessing particle levels in the home or building over time. Part of the reason for this is a process called agglomeration. Trapped particles become polarized, as do any particles that pass through the air cleaner. Through agglomeration, the polarized particles bond with other polarized particles as they collide in the air. As they increase in size, they are collected. This enables the air cleaner to capture even the very smallest sub-micron particles that tend to suspend in the air rather than move in the air stream.

Any air cleaning system’s effectiveness will be, in part, determined by the air change rates, airflow patterns, and contaminant generation rates,” continues Wiser. “Typically in a house we see particle reductions of 70-90%, but because of the low air change rates in a home, it may take a few days. In a casino, on the other hand, even though the contaminant level and generation rates are much higher, the air change rates are over ten times higher than in a house, so significant reductions in both particles and VOCs are almost immediate.

Laser particle counters confirm this phenomenon. Over a time period of several days you will first see a reduction in particles under .3 microns in size. At the same time there is a spike in the number of larger particles as the smaller particles form larger particles, and then the total particle count drops off significantly.