Return-to-work initiatives, endemic viruses, drought and wildfires, and the health effects of poor indoor air quality all increase the need for effective air purification.
The key to effective air purification is airflow. No airflow, no air purification. In response to the limitations of HEPA technology, the Brio portable air purifier is now available. Brio delivers a constant, clean airflow while removing particulate matter without filter clogging. Designed for use in homes, offices, and small-business establishments, Brio removes invisible fine and ultrafine particles, including viruses, germs, smoke, dust, and pollen using patented Advanced Particle Removal Technology (APART™).
Developed by researchers at the University of Washington, APART keeps Brio’s effectiveness high over the entire period between cartridge replacements. Brio’s non-clogging particle collection cartridge can last a year or longer, saving time and money while deep cleaning the air. HEPA air purifiers, which clog as they filter, can’t make the same promise.
Brio’s capabilities
- Stays at peak effectiveness with no clogging
- Traps fine and ultra-fine pollutants
- Removes viruses, bacteria, and germs
- Deep cleans 500 square feet in 18 minutes, 300 Square feet in 11 minutes
- Saves money using a high-capacity, long-life disposable particle collection cartridge
In discussing our motivation to create Brio, company president Larry Rothenberg noted:
“First and foremost, clean air matters to us personally, as we have experienced the effects of poor indoor air quality on long-term health. And second, thanks to our patented technology and expertise, we are in a unique position to create a more-advanced product than current market offerings. Unlike HEPA or PCO technology, Brio removes particulate matter while keeping the airflow high for better air purification.”
Brio removes COVID-19 virus and other damaging fine and ultrafine particles
In independent lab testing, at LMS Technologies in Minnesota, Brio removed 100% of live MS2 virus (Covid-19 surrogate) in just 15 minutes. Test conducted with LMS and at Intertek show rapid particle pollutant removal:
- Covid-19 surrogate: Brio removes 100% in 15 minutes
- Bacteria: Brio removes 99.9% in 20 minutes
- Ultrafine Particles: Brio removes 100% in 23 minutes
- Smoke: Brio removes 99% in 22 minutes
- Dust: Brio removes 100% in 21 minutes
- Pollen: Brio removes 96% in 10 minutes
Limits to HEPA effectiveness
All HEPA air purifiers—using technology little changed since its introduction almost 100 years ago—share the same limitation: as particles reach a HEPA filter, it clogs, reducing airflow. HEPA filters are efficient, but their actual effectiveness, as measured by the Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR), steadily declines with use.
With airflow reduced, the air isn’t cleaned as quickly. Time compounds this problem, the air gets dirtier, and the HEPA air purifier falls behind in its task. HEPA air purifiers can’t get around this clogging-and-declining-effectiveness problem. It’s how they are designed to work. Blocking particles also blocks airflow.
How Brio improves indoor air quality
Rather than pushing air and particles into an increasingly filled mechanical filter, Brio pulls particles away from the airflow. Brio’s powerful fan draws air in at the elevated base, and a pre-filter captures larger, visible pollutants. Next, viruses, gas-stove and woodfire byproducts, smoke, dust, mold, pollen, and other particles too small to see, receive an electrostatic charge as they flow past Brio’s particle charger. The APART™ Collection Cartridge attracts and traps these charged particles, so they won’t restrict the airflow. With APART technology, the CADR stays constant over time, keeping the effectiveness high, until the long-life collection cartridge is completely full. Brio is UL listed and certified as ozone-safe by the California Air Resources Board (CARB).
Affordability
Brio’s APART Collection Cartridge can last 12 months or more, while staying at peak effectiveness. This gives Brio a more affordable cost-to-own profile than comparable HEPA-style air purifiers. To stay at peak performance, a comparable HEPA air purifier may need three, four or five filter changes in the same amount of time. Over several years and with multiple air purifiers in a home or office, the cost difference can be surprising. And quite large.
In performance tests—conducted under identical lab conditions for Brio and similarly sized HEPA and Photocatalytic (PCO) air purifiers—Brio never dropped below 90 percent of its original CADR. Brio also collected 60 grams of dust. Tested HEPA-style and PCO-style air purifiers in the same time period dropped to 50 percent of their original CADR performance and collected between 25 and 60 percent less particulate matter than Brio.
APART Technology
Patented Advanced Particle Removal Technology—which pairs particle-repelling plates with disposable particle-collecting plates—is the result of five years of research at The University of Washington’s Sensors, Energy, and Automation Laboratory. Igor Krichtafovitch, PhD, an expert in electrostatics and particle pollution reduction led the research. Dr. Krichtafovitch is the Director of Research and Development at Agentis Air, LLC, the exclusive worldwide licensee of the technology.
Find out more about Brio, the innovative air purifier, here.
Meet Brio, the innovative air purifier
Better indoor air by design: How Brio works
