The HEPA filter, developed during the early 1940s for radiation filtration of nuclear material for the Manhattan Project that developed the first atomic bomb, and is still considered to this day to be the “Cadillac” of air filtration, especially with its capture of the smallest, unseen pollutants widely deemed most dangerous to human health, and widely utilized in commercial or residential venues. The renaissance of motor design and development that began in the last 10 years gave birth to a new breed of air purifier capable of much greater performance and specialized applications, thereby allowing the HEPA-equipped air purifier units to easily achieve optimum room air turnover rates.

This breakthrough in high-torque motors produced an air volume output of air measured in cubic feet per minute (CFM) capable of pushing large amounts of air through the very dense and ever-thicker modern HEPA filters at high rates of 500-2,500 CFM, thereby making the equipped air purifier units easily achieve optimum room air turnover rates of 4-10+ times per hour and making them the highest-rated air filter in the MERV filter rating system. It’s very important to note that with these high-torque motors and the large volumes of air they move, effective filtration with a thicker HEPA filter is not possible without a tight unit seal to prevent air leakage, which has been made possible by the injection molding industrial process without high-grade plastics and styrenes, including acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polypropylene (PP), and polyethylene (PE).

These new-era motors also meet green environmental standards by using far less electricity, measured in Amperes (Amps) of maximum electrical circuit draw. Most standard outlets in business and residential settings in the US are measured in Amperes and average a capacity of 15-20 Amps. These high-torque motors do not contribute heat or carbon dust into the atmosphere since they do not utilize an old-style carbon brush motor technology found generally in cheaper appliance motors. The use of wattage as a specification is still used in Europe due to a mix of different voltage and cycle systems present in their infrastructure. However, the US market uniformly uses standards where safety is stressed in building codes and Amperage is a far more accurate determinate of total electrical use and capacities.

Wattage is deceptive as it does not clearly show electrical draw effectively nor circuit requirements to run electrical equipment and is a poor statistic to weigh since induction and direct current motors use far less electricity to run than older motor types.

The HEPA filter was manufactured by the Arthur D. Little company under the direction of the US Army Chemical Corp standards set by the Defense Research Committee. Leading this effort was Nobel laureate Irving Muir who determined the methods of filter testing, and also helped select the materials to be used in the filter construction. He also set the standard of filtration required of a HEPA filter at 0.3 microns diameter at an efficiency of 99.97% capture, which was selected not just because its particle size capture percentage is even higher when above or below the 0.3 size, but because this size was the most difficult size and most concerning measurement to corral. After all, complete filtration of radioactive iodine was their goal, and perhaps not all the consequences of exposure to radioactive material was fully known at the time. They were pretty sure only bad things would be the result.

They were, after all, developing the first atomic bomb for the super-secret “Manhattan Project,” which would end World War 2, and even the success or failure in this endeavor was questionable. The super filter made their work possible, and to this day it’s the best at removing particulate matter ever devised.

We will soon discuss the features pertinent to an air purifier unit, filter types utilized in air purifier (AP) units, and also Salon Equipment Evaluation Standard (SEES) recommendation for optimum features to be considered for use it a professional grooming or animal care facility. Hopefully this will help in implementing solutions to the common air quality problems faced in these environment, and be a game changer in making grooming salons the best they can be for all concerned.

Till Next Time,
-The Professor