Clean air - ofcourse
Ionization is a process that enables the ambient air to becleaned in a natural and, of course, sustainable manner.
In order that the indoor air is rid of harmful substancesand odorous emissions, ionair imitates the cleaning
process of nature artificially with its Air Quality System(AQS). Text Paolo D‘Avino
Before Google appeared and algorithms were anchored as a common term in general linguistic use, thepeople at LK Luftqualität AG (ionair) had already been working with them for a long time. In contrast tothe functions with the search engine, however, the algorithm with the Central Swiss Company consists ofsimple and comprehensible operations. The formula is plain and simple: measure, record and adjust. «If
you want to improve the quality of indoor air, then three factors are indispensable» explained Beda
Weibel, CEO of the company, on the tour of the company in Lucerne. According to the graduate
mechanical engineer ETH: «Firstly, the air quality must be measured with gas sensors and the measured
data acquired must be recorded before you can intervene in the situation and respond to it». For over 20years, the company has specialised in the improvement of indoor air quality. The process is called «airionization». Even the founder of ionair, Werner Fleischer, proceeded in accordance with the same
principles 20 years ago. This saw the development of, on the one hand, independent sensors, and on theother hand, sensors that were affordable and available for the first time on the market, in order to be able
to continuously measure the harmful substances indoors. «A scientific quantum leap» explained Weibel,
since the gas sensors, especially for the continuous measurement outside the laboratory, were still at an
early stage of development. Consequently, in the 1990s, Fleischer had no option but to develop his ownsensors for his technology.
Simulation of natural processes«The ionization of the air is a natural process that takes place continuously in the atmosphere» outlined
Weibel in his documentation for the 3rd Swiss hygiene conference. The cosmic radiation from space aswell as the radiation from the uppermost layers of the Earth or certain rocks or gases such as radon, forexample, is responsible for this situation. «Other sources of air ionization are water sprays such as ocean
water or waterfalls, special appearances of wind and even lightning» continued Weibel. These sources ofenergy move electrons that are trapped from oxygen molecules in the air. In other words, it is a matter of
the transmission of natural energy to the air. The more energy the air contains, the more reaction-friendly1

it becomes. Artificial air ionization simulates this reaction or this natural process. The method for air
treatment works with ionization tubes that ionize the air via electric discharge. «These tubes are installedeither in a mono-block or in a supply air duct, where they are used after the usual air treatment such asfiltering, cooling, heating, humidification or dehumidification» stated Weibel. A processor with a fivetime sensor adaptation then ensures an optimal mode of action in the desired rooms. According to Weibel,
this means that there is a constant balance available between oxidizable gases and oxygen ions in theionized rooms. If irregularities or malfunctions are identified in the process that the controller cannot
correct on its own, the customer and the service technician are notified and suitable measures can beinitiated promptly. The gas sensor immediately triggers an alarm if the customer-specific values enteredare exceeded.
Clean air for well-being
Apart from the intake of food and water, the human being needs air to live. «About 20 kilograms of air
daily» stated Weibel. Good and healthy room air is not only important for health - even well-being andproductivity depend on it. Clean air is apparently not something that can be taken for granted. Several
studies conducted at different times and places in Europe have established that the air quality or thecomfort is assessed by users as being unsatisfactory based on odours in many office buildings. Since
1983, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has been defining a series of mood disorders which, among
other things, are correlated to the room air quality. One such disorder is the «Sick Building Syndrome»(SBS). «Hence, measures for cleaning the room air will increasingly gain importance in the near future»explained Weibel. In this day and age, there are a number of harmful substances in the air, which –without counter-measures such as ionization – might possibly have an unfavourable impact on well-being
and health. Air conditioning systems, primarily in humid climatic zones, may be the starting point for
spreading bacteria and mildew. Possible causes could also be the contamination of filters and moist
locations in the air lines. Similarly, the «volatile organic compounds» (VOC) that are contained in various
products such as paints, lacquers, cleaners, body care products and in spray cans as propellant could be afactor. According to the Federal Office for Environment (BAFU), these substances get circulated when
the above-mentioned products are used and have a harmful effect on human beings and the environment.
In order to reduce the emissions of such VOC and to bring these down to «harmless» quantities, as aconsequence of the prolonged discussion on these emissions held on 12th November 1997, the Ordinanceon the incentive tax on volatile organic compounds (VOCV) came into effect.
Subjective odour sensing«The sense of smell is a complex and highly selective phenomenon» explained Weibel. Moreover, thesubjectively coloured perception could lead to disturbances in well-being. In real-life situations today,
human beings spend an average of over 80% of their time indoors. A significant problem with theprovision of high-quality indoor air is the combination or mixture of the air with particles, microorganisms and gases. Weibel explained the process as follows: «Odorous substances may already beperceived below the verification limit, i.e. in conditions of extreme dilution». This is where ionair’s

2technology is applied. The concentration of odour nuisance is measured in the outdoor air and the extract
air by «electronic noses». Furthermore, the relative atmospheric humidity, the volumetric flow rate andthe ozone concentration are measured in the supply air. The power controller continuously evaluates thecondition of the supply air, extracted air and the outdoor air and accurately derives the optimal ionizing
intensity from it. «The ionization modules thus generate oxygen ions, depending on the situation, that
decompose the existing harmful and odorous substances in a targeted manner» explained Weibel. The
ionization modules work with a constant AC voltage, whereby the power consumption of the individual
ionization tubes is of the order of a few watts. «As a result of this, the temperature on the surface of thetubes does not rise». This provides the advantage that there cannot be devolatilization of dust particles.
Before the discharge of ionized air in the rooms to be ventilated, this comes into contact with the «ozone
monitoring sensor». This monitors that the health-related limit value of ozone in the supply air is neverexceeded, unless the concentration of ozone in the outdoor air has already been exceeded – which may
happen, especially on hot summer days. «The ozone monitoring sensor is one of the several measures
implemented that makes the entire system absolutely safe» confirmed Weibel. The size of the systems
depends on the volume of air that is needed for a room and on the harmful substances in the ambient air.
«Installations close to an airport or a road carrying heavy traffic need optimised system designs».
Review with favourable findings
The competence centre for Typology & Planning in Architecture (CCTP) of the University of Lucerne
has dealt in detail with ionized air indoors in a review. In their contribution dated January 2013, theauthors pursued the issue of whether and how ionized air has an impact on the health, well-being and theperformance of human beings spending time indoors. The authors came to the conclusion that – even
without any option at present to be able to compile a scientific and comprehensive opinion on this subject– the consulted studies provide unambiguous indications that there are unique correlations existing
between the ion content of the air and the health, well-being and physical performance. The scientists
were able to prove that ionized air can contribute effectively to improved air quality, since the proportionof aerosols and organic particles in the air gets reduced with it. The authors also noted that with abalanced indoor condition, in other words, a balance of positive and negative ions, improved oxygen
absorption takes place. According to the authors, the improved absorption of oxygen has aphysiologically favourable impact on human beings because the metabolic processes in the human bodyare based on oxidation. Ultimately, the authors note that ions are not perceptible «specifically» by thesenses of human beings. However, the human being can still sense an ionized room, which is comparablewith how you sense the air after a thunderstorm – i.e. that the air has freshened up.
Testing in practice
The long reference list of the company based in Lucerne establishes that the air ionization technology has
proven itself in practice despite gaps that need to be plugged scientifically. The airport at Zurich as wellas the Hotel Park Hyatt in Shanghai and the Marina Bay Sands Casino in Singapore are just a few of3

ionair’s regular customers. «We already have over 6,000 such Air Quality Systems (AQS) worldwide andhave installed them in the most diverse climatic zones» said CEO Weibel. Therefore, even the Inselspitalin Bern is one of our customers. «Good air quality and hygiene are the measure of all things in a hospitalwith respect to the convalescence of a patient» emphasised Benjamin Schwarz, Department Head, HVACsystems. The requirements and demands on man and material are accordingly stringent. Schwarz and his
team of 37 members monitor approximately 1,800 individual HVAC systems, which they manage 24hours a day/7 days a week. According to Bruno Rentsch, Factory Manager for ventilation and airconditioning at the Inselspital, the requirements change for every zone in the hospital. Depending on theneed, the indoor air is filtered, cooled, heated, humidified or dehumidified differently. Understandably,different climatic conditions must be met in an operation theatre than those in a common room or lounge.
Despite the maintenance, management and need-based control, the workshop receives about 30
complaints per week that the Workshop Manager has to follow up on. «This forms part of the dailybusiness» explained Rentsch, adding that the feeling of comfort is a complex issue, on which the weather
and the outdoor temperatures have as much of an impact as the emotional condition of a person.
No more complaints
The comfort is the sum of a technical climate in day-to-day life. And with circa 8,000 employees andabout 40,000 patients each year, at the Inselspital it cannot always be «uniformly» specified, explained
Schwarz. «Too warm, too cold or too much draught: everyone finds it to be different». In addition, thebackground noise, the to and fro movement indoors or the existing harmful substances and odours in theair affect the state of the mind enormously. The correlation cannot always be established and proven,emphasised Schwarz, although experience shows that human beings perceive odours more intensively athigh temperatures, high levels of humidity and poor ventilation. «Harmful substances can generally betackled by feeding more air» added Rentsch. You virtually flush them out of the room, but nonetheless,this is not always possible in certain situations. A great challenge for building automation equipment isposed by the flexible construction of the building these days and the changeovers resulting from this in
hospital operation, where examination and treatment units, operation theatres, as well as medical services,
are located under a single roof and you cannot increase or affect the volume of air and the air speed –without prior test results – based on the standards and directives applicable. «For systems that have low
air exchange rates and source flow rates, the duct network and the air volume cannot always be expanded
as desired» added Schwarz. Based on such restrictions, we ultimately – upon recommendation – cameinto contact with the AQS of ionair. «In the meantime, the shock and operating rooms as well as thewardrobes for the personnel are ionized artificially» explained Schwarz, which led to the fact thatcomplaints and objections – which were often raised before the ionization – could be reduced to a large
extent.

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Approval of the ionization system«All providers and manufacturers in the market for ionization systems must comply with the technicalstandards» stated Weibel. Technical standards are reviewed in the course of laboratory tests byindependent test institutes. «These certificates are just as meaningful for third parties as they
demonstrably and authoritatively certify that the provider complies with all relevant technical standards»
emphasised Weibel. Authorities of the Federation, Canton and Municipality are composed of the industry
association SWKI, the SUVA, the University of Lucerne and ionair. «The authorities, of course, areinterested in restricting the risks and excluding hazards for health and the environment, which is also
covered by the interests of ionair» added Weibel. Subsequently, ionair has received the approval for thetested system with the usual conditions and requirements. For example, the indoor quality of air should
not be worse than that of the outdoor air (reference air) and the sensitivity threshold for ozone of 50 ppb(99.7 µg/m3) should not be exceeded. Weibel emphasised that these requirements are met by the productsof ionair. Until the time that an approved test procedure is implemented by all authorities, it is necessary
to submit measurement-related declarations of ionization systems prior to commissioning them andputting them into operation. In cooperation with the authorities and all associations involved withperforming the series of measurement, ionair has made significant contributions in the course ofimplementing a generally valid approval process. «This confirms that Switzerland is open to newtechnologies» remarked Weibel. In the opinion of Weibel, who acquired the company in 2012 from
Werner Fleischer, this is yet another milestone. «The effectiveness and acceptance of the ionair products
can be measured primarily on the basis of satisfied customers» he explained. «We are on the right path»
he added. He does not allow himself to be dissuaded from the basic principle of improving the hygiene of
air both permanently and sustainably. The algorithm also remains the same as it was when the company
was founded: measure, record and adjust.

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