Flora Cooler, Miami

Airocide PPTTM Perishables Preservation Technology

Airocide PPTTM photocatalytic air purifiers contain the same NASA-developed technology that is used in a variety of Airocide product lines. 

In addition to serving the floral and perishable preservation and food safety industry the Airocide technology has been developed to kill/remove/eliminate airborne pathogenic and non-pathogenic microorganisms in vegetative and spore states (bacteria, mold, fungi, viruses and dust mites), allergens, odors and harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in air in a variety of commercial, government and residential market applications including the medical healthcare industry (Airocide is listed as an FDA Class II Medical Device).

Summary

A clinical study of the Airocide PPT airborne pathogen killing technology was conducted in the floral cooler of Equiflor Corporation, a leading floral growing, distributing and marketing company in Miami, FL. 

The data supports the hypothesis that airborne mold and bacteria levels would be lowered after 48 hours of continuous operation of the Airocide PPT air purifying system. The results show and average airborne mold reduction inside the coolers of 78.5% in 48 hours.

Protocol

The floral coolers used in this study were both approximately 2679 m3 in volume. The system in the study consisted of two (2) GCS-100 units, one in each of the floral coolers. This configuration was deliberately designed to challenge the Airocide air purifying units in rooms that were nearly twice the recommended utilization. 

The test period consisted of two (2) days of air sampling in November 2004. A baseline air sample was taken in each test location in the coolers without the units operating and was compared to Active On samples taken in the same locations after 48 hours of use. Air samples were taken for comparison in the Receiving Area. Air samples were taken with a slit air sampler (similar to the Andersen N6 sampler) on 15 x 100 mm plastic petri dishes. All samples were cultured on Potato Dextrose Agar plate by Aerotech Laboratories in Phoenix, AZ. All agar plates were exposed to 28.3 l/m of air for 3 minutes. 

The results were measured in colony forming units (CFU) per cubic meter of air (CFU: the number of viable bacteria or fungal cells in a sample capable of reproduction).

Results

The table bellow shows airborne mold reduction inside the coolers of 79.9% and 75.1%, or an average of 78.5% in 48 hours. This dramatic decrease is particularly significant considering the size of the area in which the Airocide units were installed.