Laminar Air Flow Principle in India, Chennai - Pure Air System

  Laminar Air Flow Principle in India, Chennai - Pure Air System

Laminar Airflow

A laminar flow hood is an important piece of equipment in the laboratory, hospitals, quality control department or even on the production floor in many industries.

Laminar flow hoods provide a means of circulating filtered air through a small area in order to significantly reduce the chances of exposure to airborne contaminants. These hoods are used in applications where the air quality is of paramount importance, including in pharmacies, food production and preparation as well as in operating rooms.

The hood protects delicate materials and samples (particularly biological samples) from contamination by ensuring that the air circulated throughout the unit is nearly free of dust and other airborne materials. Air circulation systems in the hood provide airflow in parallel planes which remove airborne debris introduced into the work environment of the laminar flow hood by the operator. The circulation of air in laminar flow hoods is also designed to prevent the entry of potentially contaminated air from outside of the hood from entering and adulterating samples and possibly damaging materials inside.

As the hood is in use, air is forced from the rear of the hood in parallel planes to the work surface towards the front of the unit. The air is dual-filtered before being circulated back into the air of the rest of the room, first by a pre-filter which removes larger particulate matter such as larger dust and dirt particles from the air, followed by a high efficiency HEPA filter to produce air which is pure enough to meet the applicable standards for the work environment in which the laminar flow hood is being used.

While laminar flow hoods are designed to provide an exceptional level of protection to the samples and other materials within the workspace from contamination, it should be noted that they are not designed to provide a significant level of protection to the operator. For this reason, operators should not work with any materials which could not safely be used on an open, hood less bench. Any materials which are toxic or flammable enough that they would not be used without a hood should not be used with one of these hoods; a fume hood or other protective equipment should be used in this case rather than a laminar flow hood.

The air in a typical laboratory, clinic or other workplace where laminar flow hoods are used may be safe enough to breathe, generally speaking; but contains far too many contaminants for many production or research applications to be carried out without having a serious detrimental impact on the outcome. These hoods are generally run around the clock when there is ongoing work in the facility which depends on the purity of the air - if a hood must be turned off, it should be run for a minimum of half an hour before use and thoroughly cleaned and disinfected.

There are both vertical flow and horizontal flow models of laminar flow hood available, the different configurations being better suited for particular applications. The vertical flow models are more energy efficient, but are not ideal for every application. In the pharmaceutical research and development process, pharmaceutical production processes, medical care and research, life sciences laboratories and the manufacture of sensitive electronic components, laminar flow hoods are vital to ensuring the integrity of samples and products.

Andrew Long writes for scientific websites and a main area for content covers laminar flow hoods and products like bench reactor products and other calorimetry lab products.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Andrew_K_Long/116673

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3263536