Assessment of Low-Cost Air Quality Sensor Systems when Used to Evaluate DIY Air Cleaner Performance

Details

• Journal Article:
  Aerosol Science and Technology
• Personal Author:
  Barnes, Christopher ; Thompson, Drew ; Chen, Amelia ; Feng, H. Amy ; Pena, Mirle ; Hammond, Duane R.
• Description:
  Do-it-yourself (DIY) air cleaners can be a temporary, low-cost ventilation strategy for improving indoor air quality by reducing airborne particulate contaminants. However, to our knowledge, no comprehensive assessment of multiple low-cost sensor systems (LCSs) for evaluating DIY air cleaner performance has yet been conducted. In this study, we investigated seven LCSs when used to evaluate the air cleaning performance of DIY air cleaners. Three portable high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) air cleaners (HACs) and three different DIY air cleaners, namely the single filter, Ford Scrappy, and Corsi-Rosenthal (CR) Box designs, were evaluated. All air cleaners were challenged with a NaCl aerosol, and their clean air delivery rate (CADR) was calculated from PM2.5 mass concentrations measured by the LCSs and a reference particulate matter (PM) monitor. The published Dust CADR ratings of the HACs and the CADRs calculated from the reference PM monitor were used to determine the mean absolute percent error (MAPE) in the CADRs calculated from the LCSs. The LCSs' MAPE in CADR among all air cleaners tested ranged from 1.6-44.2%. Three of the seven LCSs had a MAPE ≤10%. No correlations between LCS performance in our study and their published performance evaluations were identified. However, we found that the correction factor of PM sensors from one manufacturer, found in four of the LCSs evaluated, impacted performance. We also suspect the transient test conditions created by operating mixing fans and air cleaners during experiments, the LCS housing design, and the calibration of the LCS may be driving factors impacting LCS performance in our study. Overall, we demonstrated that certain LCSs can be a viable option for evaluating the air cleaning performance of DIY air cleaners. Description provided by NIOSH
• Subjects:
  • Aerosols
  • Air Quality
  • Occupational Health
  • Particulate Matter
  • Safety
• Keywords:
  • Aerosols
  • Air cleaning
  • Airborne particulates
  • Sensors
  • HEPA filters
  • High-efficiency particulate air filters
  • Air quality monitoring
  • Indoor air quality
  • IAQ
• ISSN:
  0021-8502
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Chicago Region OSHA ; Ohio
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DFSE - Division of Field Studies and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  16 pdf pages
• Volume:
  60
• Issue:
  8
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20071712
• Citation:
  J Aerosol Sci 2026 Aug; 60(8):825-839
• Contact Point Address:
  Chris Barnes, Division of Field Studies and Engineering, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, 1090 Tusculum Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45226, USA
• Email:
  tgo0@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2026
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/259938/cdc_259938_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.66 MB]
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:15a70d607f81ad3cd786945300788bf0340dedd9868f0b4c7719a9263ad6cea0cf30b7ff5fe1ed42badaf4e6aed2d66a690709e7339bf68354a83651b00b51ec