Design and performance evaluation of plasma air cleaning systems for removing yellow sand dust

Yellow sand dust (Asian dust storms) causes harmful damage indoors and outdoors during the springtime, and the removal of Yellow sand dust has become an issue for suitable indoor conditions. An air cleaner is required to remove Yellow sand dust efficiently to improve indoor air quality, and the removal characteristics of Yellow sand dust should be studied. The size distribution and mass concentration of Yellow sand dust observed in China and Korea are analyzed, and the removal efficiency of a plasma air cleaning system based on the principle of electrostatic precipitation is evaluated by using Yellow sand dust. Mass median diameter of Yellow sand dust sampled in Beijing and Seoul ranges from 7.0 to 8.0 μm with a mass concentration of 300-1,462 μg/m³. For a single-pass test, the efficiency of dust removal increases with increasing particle size and decreasing flow rate. The removal efficiency of Yellow sand dust in a plasma air cleaning system at a face velocity of 1.0 m/s is higher than 80%. For a multi-pass test in occupied spaces, the operation time required to reduce Yellow sand dust concentration from an initial concentration of 300 μg/m³ to 150 μg/m³ is 10 minutes for a test room of 27 m³.