Our
most powerful weapons in the battle for clean air in the home came from
the military. To protect its researchers from radioactive dust, the
US Atomic Energy Commision had HEPA developed --
now the bench mark standard in air cleaning for removing harmful particles.
Gases,
the other enemies of clean air, have proved much more elusive. And far
more dangerous. Austin Air Systems led the way in defending indoor air
from noxious gases and odors with the introduction of granular activated
carbon -- the most effective medium for
trapping gas.
Until
now, however, granular activated carbon has been the only form available
to civilian technology. Heavy and difficult to work with, it has been
restricted to high end air cleaners designed for the most exacting users.
Even though Austin's engineers extracted optimal efficiency from the
material, it had limited effectiveness against some of the most tenacious
and toxic gases in the home -- cigarette
smoke and acetones, for example.