Why Is Air Quality In Vehicles Important?
Research shows that millions of people die prematurely due to illnesses attributed to air pollution. Indoor air pollution occurs not only in commercial and residential buildings—where we live, play, and work—but also in the interior of vehicles: cars, buses, trucks, airplanes and other commercial vehicles.
The air inside vehicles can be more than a dozen times worse than just a few meters away on the outside. Even if we spend about 1-2 hours of our day driving, we will get up to half of our daily exposure to vehicle-related pollutants during that time.
At first, interior air pollution will cause only discomfort. However, some pollutants can cause serious cardiovascular and respiratory diseases that will appear only after a period of time. Approximately, between 5%-10% of individuals globally have asthma or suffer from some type of allergy due to airborne particulates.
In a vehicle, you are exposed to pollutants from the exterior environment as well, from the interior parts and even people. From vehicle emissions and brake dust to smoke and allergens, your lungs are being bombarded with particles and gases of varying toxicity.
Let’s say you’re driving through a city. You’re exposed to gases, particle pollution, tire, brake, and road wear. That’s a recipe for some really unhealthy air. Particles like coarse road dust and pollen are larger and can be stopped with many filters. As we get down to fine particles, with a diameter of less than 2.5 or even 1 micron, we’ve got things like fine dust, spores and bacteria. These smallest particles are the most dangerous ones, because they can enter your bloodstream and cause serious diseases.
When you’re confined to your car, Vehicle Interior Air Quality can be more than a dozen times worse than inside of a building. Now let’s move to the country for some fresh air, right? There are gasses out here which are linked to farming and agricultural work. And don’t even get us started on industrial areas.
Of course, you can recirculate the air in your car, but harmful pollution can also originate from inside of the vehicle. Interior parts – like fabrics, carpets, plastics – all off-gas different substances. You may know it as the “new car smell.” Not to mention pollution from humans, like fibers or bacteria.
However, a quality Cabin Air Filter makes all the difference to yourself and other vehicle occupants. Let’s take a look at how a car’s air filtration system works. Your vehicle pulls air from a vent under the hood, it passes through the cabin air filter before it is heated or cooled. Finally, the air comes out of the vents and into the cabin. Not all cabin air filters are created equally, and you deserve the best.
The heart of a cabin air filter is the filter media, the material the filter is made out of. CabinPro™ is a premium filtration media consisting of multiple layers, catching smallest particles and gasses before they reach the cabin.
Learn more: contact Hollingsworth & Vose today and follow our channels.
Hollingsworth & Vose: Creating a Cleaner World.
How Can Air Quality In Vehicles Be Improved
Cabin air filters serve a vital role in improving the Vehicle Interior Air Quality (VIAQ) and protecting the health and safety of vehicle passengers and drivers. Cabin air filtration is crucial in all types of vehicles, not only passenger cars but also utility and commercial vehicles.
Airborne contaminants in vehicles can be particles, like pollen, soot and dust, but also gasses and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) like e.g. Sulfur dioxide, n-Butane, Toluene, Ammonia, Nitrogen Oxide, and Aldehydes, as well as bacteria and viruses. These contaminants may originate from both the inside and outside the vehicle.
Data presented by the World Health Organization, the United Nations and the OECD are really alarming. Air pollution is the major environmental threat to human lives.
We consume 3 to 4 kilograms of food and drinks per day, and we actively choose what to eat and drink. At the same time, we breathe in 15 to 20 kilograms of air per day. Shouldn’t we also be very critical of what we breathe?
So why is the air in vehicles so much worse than on the outside? In vehicles, you have everything that comes from the outside, like, for example, exhaust from other cars, especially if the roads are busy or standing in traffic or the lights are red. And then you also have everything that comes from the inside of the car.
The leading risk factors are so-called fine particles referred to as PM 2.5, and subgroup ultrafine PM 1 particles. These fine particles are most dangerous as our lungs cannot filter them out when we breathe in.
We also have the pollution from the inside, like the interior of the cars, like the fabrics, the carpets, the dashboards, but also window sealants, adhesives. They all off-gas or desorb chemicals into the cabin.
Cabin air filters play a vital role in improving the Vehicle Interior Air Quality and protecting and safeguarding the passengers lives. At Hollingsworth & Vose, we develop patented filter media solutions under the trade name CabinPro to do exactly that.
So the very heart of a cabin air filter is the filter media. This cabin air filter is made of. So that is where the science happens. That stops all these pollutants, particles, gases and VOCs from harming all of us.
The CabinPro brand reflects our ability to provide well known H & V technologies for cabin air filtration, like Technostat, NanoWeb or AlphaPerm, and our ability to combine those into composite products.
Additionally, they can be combined with high-class carbon absorptive layers, which then are best to filter fine particles up to PM 1 or PM 2.5 level, as well as gases like and n-Butane, Toluene, SO2 and others.
Our Superior Level Protection products provide further benefits depending upon the application needs, like lower pressure drop and high dust-holding capacity (DHC) compared to other high-end product available in the market.
We are committed to being at the forefront of a cleaner world.
We believe in what we do, and we believe our CabinPro Solutions can make a big difference in the air we breathe daily.
As experts in filtration, we want to make sure we raise awareness among the public on the importance of clean air within vehicles.
We want people to know, to be able to protect themselves, especially our children, the young ones.
Wherever you live, travel, or work, chances are high that an H & V solution is nearby, contributing to a cleaner, healthier, and more sustainable world.
Because we care.
Because we care.
Because we care.
Because we care.
Because we care.
Interested in Learning More About Air Quality in Vehicles?
Listen to the Cabin Air Exchange podcasts and get insights from Industry Experts in Air Quality.
CabinPro™ Filter Media Solutions in your Cabin Air Filters.
One key way to improve your Vehicle Interior Air Quality (VIAQ) and protect your health against dangerous air contamination is the use of H&V’s CabinPro™ filter media solutions in your cabin air filters.
With their superior performance, CabinPro™ products ensure the essential: breathing healthy air for vehicle operators and passengers.
To learn more about CabinPro™H&V’s Cabin Air Filtration Solutions, please click here.
The engineered material that largely determines the performance and reliability of the filter.
What are Cabin Air Filtration Applications?
Cabin air filters are used in many vehicles, including:
- EVs (Electric Vehicles)
- Hybrid Passenger Vehicles
- ICE Vehicles (Internal Combustion Engine)
- Heavy-Duty Trucks
- Trains
- Buses
- Other Commercial Vehicles
Cabin air filtration is also crucial in other Vehicle Interior Air Applications, including:
- Aerospace Applications
- Agricultural Vehicles
- Construction Equipment
- Heavy-Duty Equipment
- Military vehicles
- Off-Road Vehicles
Download Our Cabin Air Filtration Brochure
Cabin air filters serve a vital role in improving the Vehicle Interior Air Quality (VIAQ) and protecting the health and safety of vehicle passengers and drivers.
Choose H&V’s CabinPro™ Solutions
High-efficiency cabin air filtration media like CabinPro™ ensures optimum driving conditions, protecting the health and comfort of vehicle passengers and operators, as well as increasing the lifespan of the vehicle components.
Hollingsworth & Vose is a world-leading provider of high-efficiency, low-pressure-drop cabin air filter media for a variety of applications.
Contact H&V today to learn more about our cabin air filtration solutions.
To download the Cabin Air Infographic,please click here.
Download Our CabinPro™ Portfolio Overview Brochure
CabinPro™ Filter Media offer the best possible protection against particulate and gaseous contaminants, covering a wide range of performance levels.
