Advanced, Regenerable Chemical and Biological Filters

The two major goals of this project are to achieve HEPA-like particle capture efficiency at a significantly reduced pressure drop and to incorporate into air filters a safe and effective means to efficiently capture and neutralize pernicious chemical and biological agents. We propose two novel advanced air filtration technologies: (1) direct-cast microsieve filters and (2) reactive nano-coatings. The unique design of Innovative Construction and Building Materials (ICBM) microsieve filters will provide 100 % capture efficiency of bio-aerosols in the 1 - 10 micron size range while operating at a fraction of the pressure drop of a HEPA filter. Reactive nano-coatings on fibrous filter media will efficiently capture and neutralize chemical weapon agents (CWA) at substantially reduced pressure drop compared to current gas filtration technologies. Furthermore, the ICBM microsieve and reactive nano-coating technologies will be combined to create the new standard for HVAC and gas mask applications by providing highly efficient broad spectrum protection against chemical weapons and bio-aerosols at a fraction of the operating cost of current measures. The initial phase of advanced filter development is described herein.