Scientists of the Indian Institutes of Technology, Ropar and Kanpur and the Faculty of Management Studies of Delhi University have developed a living plant-based air purifier, "Ubreathe Life", that amplifies the air purification process in indoor spaces, a statement said on Wednesday.
These indoor spaces can either be hospitals, schools, offices or homes, it said.
IIT Ropar's startup company, Urban Air Laboratory, has developed the product and claims it to be the world's first state-of-the art 'smart bio-filter' that can make breathing fresh.
It has been incubated at IIT Ropar, which is a designated iHub - AWaDH (Agriculture and Water Technology Development Hub) by the Department of Science and Technology.
The technology works through an air-purifying natural leafy plant. The room-air interacts with the leaves and goes to the soil-root zone where maximum pollutants are purified.
The novel technology used in this product is 'Urban Munnar Effect' along with patent pending "Breathing Roots" to exponentially amplify the phytoremediation process of the plants. Phytoremediation is a process by which plants effectively remove pollutants from the air.
"'Ubreathe Life' effectively improves indoor air quality by removing particulate, gaseous and biological contaminants while increasing the oxygen levels in the indoor space through specific plants, UV disinfection and a stack of pre-filter, charcoal filter and HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filter fitted in a specially designed wooden box," the statement said.
There is a centrifugal fan which creates a suction pressure inside the purifier, and releases purified air, formed at the roots, through the outlet in 360 degree direction.
The specific plants tested for air-purification include peace lily, snake plant, spider plant etc. and all have given good results in purifying indoor air.
The results of testing, conducted by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories and the Laboratory of IIT Ropar, maintain that the AQI (Air Quality Index) for a room size of 150sq.ft. drops from 311 to 39 in 15 minutes after using 'Ubreathe Life', claims Director, IIT, Ropar, professor Rajeev Ahuja, it said.
He claimed that this is the first-ever living plant-based air purifier in the world that can be a game changer.
