PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The environment in airplane cabins becomes a public concern whenever a new or re-emerging pathogen, such as the MERS coronavirus or the Influenza A (H7N9) virus, is in the news. Each report of an outbreak raises questions about whether aircraft cabin air can transmit these harmful pathogens. Engineers from the Aerospace group at Pall Corporation have teamed up with scientists from the company’s Medical group to develop high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA1) filters for aircraft cabin air and validate their effectiveness in removing microbes. Following healthcare and pharmaceutical industry standard practices, an independent laboratory2 has tested Pall’s full-sized aircraft cabin air filter elements at their rated air flow. The lab demonstrated that Pall HEPA cabin air filters have a microbial removal efficiency of greater than 99.999% with bacteria and viruses. The H7N9 “avian flu” and H1N1 “swine flu” viruses, as well as the MERS coronavirus, are similar in size and other parameters to the virus used to test the Pall filters. Once captured by the HEPA filter media, the survival rate of microorganisms in the aircraft environment is very low. 3
To learn more about Pall’s cabin air filtration solutions, please visit: http://www.pall.com/cabinair.
About Pall Corporation
Pall Corporation is a filtration, separation and purification leader providing solutions to meet the critical fluid management needs of customers across the broad spectrum of life sciences and industry. Pall works with customers to advance health, safety and environmentally responsible technologies. The company’s engineered products enable process and product innovation and minimize emissions and waste. Pall Corporation is an S&P 500 company serving customers worldwide. Pall has been named a “top green company” by Newsweek magazine. To see how Pall is helping enable a greener, safer, more sustainable future, follow us on Twitter @PallCorporation or visit www.pall.com/green.
Notes
1The DOP (dioctyl phthalate) test specified by Boeing consists of challenging the filter with an aerosol mist of DOP droplets having a mean size of 0.3 microns. The sodium flame test specified by Airbus consists of challenging the filter with an aerosol mist of sodium chloride particles having a mean size of 0.58 microns. The removal efficiency is calculated by measuring the particle concentrations upstream and downstream of the filter element being tested.
2Centre for Applied Microbiology and Research (CAMR), now known as Public Health England.
3Even state-of-the-art cabin air filters cannot prevent the possibility of direct person-to-person transmission of infection within the aircraft cabin. Direct contact, such as touching common surfaces, sneezing, coughing and speaking with an infected individual on an airplane or on the ground, can transmit infections.
