In the ordinary course, the standard material used for filtration of air is Activated Carbon.
One must admit that activated carbon is excellent at eliminating impurities from the air and water. However, a lot depends on the microporosity and the surface area.
The larger the surface area and greater the porosity, the more efficient is the filtration. Hence, you can call it a surface-limited process. It can prove to be a disadvantage as well.
Nano Silver Filter – The Principle
The nano silver filter takes care of this disadvantage because silver has excellent anti-microbial qualities (much similar to activated carbon).
Secondly, it does not require a larger surface area to work. Nano bits of silver of 100 nanometres in diameter are enough to do the job. These silver particles are incredibly efficient at decimating both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria.
Indian brand AC units’ manufacturers such as Voltas and Blue Star use nano solver filters in their latest AC models.
Nano Silver Filter – The Working
The nano silver filter works by releasing the silver ions to sterilize the bacteria. The advantage is that silver not only kills the bacteria but also inhibits the further growth of bacteria and other microbes like virus, fungi, and spores.
The nano silver technology destroys the inner configuration of these microbes by absorbing the cells.
Nano Silver Filter – Pros
- Acts as a perfect complement to the activated carbon filters
- Eliminates bacteria and other harmful substances from the air that the standard HEPA filters are unable to do
- Inhibits the further growth of these bacteria
- It can also remove other pollutants like pet dander, pollen, and dust
- Research shows that nano silver filters can eradicate more than 600 types of bacteria and disinfect 99.99% of the filtered air.
Occupies less space
Nano Silver Filter – Cons
- Excessive exposure to silver can make the bacteria silver-resistant
- Nano silver can also promote antibiotic resistance because of the process of co-selection. Co-selection is a process where bacteria challenged with one antimicrobial find a resistance gene by swapping the DNA with bacteria that are resistant to a different antimicrobial.
- Silver has environmental concerns because of the toxic effect it causes on different kinds of cells