KBC Debuts Portable Indoor Air Purification System

Knorr Brake Company (KBC) has launched a portable, 2-Stage Air Filtration and Purification System for use in office buildings and facilities to protect against airborne viruses, bacteria and pollutants.

This follows KBC’s March completion of the second round of testing of its 3-Stage Air Filtration and Purification System for passenger railcars. KBC is a subsidiary of Munich, Germany-based Knorr-Bremse.

An independent ISO 17025-accredited laboratory has found that the 2-Stage Air Filtration and Purification System’s technology “consistently and reliably eliminates 99.9% of airborne viruses and bacteria within five minutes, depending on total room size,” reported KBC. The antimicrobial system is configured by Merak North America, a KBC division.

“The unit delivers the perfect pairing for transit authorities and other operators,” KBC President and CEO Jason Connell said. “While our powerful 3-Stage System helps protect riders on an authority’s transit vehicles, the 2-Stage System offers the same proven protection for the personnel who propel their business.

“Documented test results combined with ongoing testing definitively demonstrate that the Merak® 2-Stage Air Filtration and Purification System is effective not only against the continuing threat of the COVID-19 virus and its variants, but also against an array of other live viruses, pollutants, and even odors.”

How Does the 2-Stage System Work?

KBC explains:

• Step one, the “Merak® Intense Field Dielectric filtration process provides an initial line of defense by actively filtering out large particles and electrostatically filtering out smaller particulates down to 23 nanometers in size.”

• Step two, the “Merak Dielectric Barrier Discharge technology uses bipolar ionization to purify the air, dispersing between 3.5 million to 5 million positive and negative oxygen ions per cubic centimeter to attack viruses, bacteria, and pollutants. These pollutants and contaminants, including exhaust fumes, smoke, and odors, are dissolved into water and carbon dioxide and removed.”

Three standard-capacity models of the portable 2-Stage System are available to accommodate different room/space sizes. Custom-engineered units are also an option.

Each unit is equipped with locking caster wheels for portability and can be plugged into any wall outlet to filter, purify and recirculate the air, according to KBC. The unit requires only surface dusting and regular cleaning of its reusable filters, the company added.