Experiments on high efficiency aerosol filtration

Research on high efficiency aerosol filtration by the Nuclear Engineering Institute of Pisa University and by CAMEN in collaboration with CNEN is outlined. HEPA filter efficiency was studied as a function of the type and size of the test aerosol, and as a function of flowrate (+-50% of the nominal value), air temperature (up to 700C), relative humidity (up to 100%), and durability in a corrosive atmosphere (up to 140 hours in NaCl mist). In the selected experimental conditions these influences were appreciable but are not sufficient to be significant in industrial HEPA filter applications. Planned future research is outlined: measurement of the efficiency of two HEPA filters in series using a fixed particle size; dependence of the efficiency on air, temperatures up to 300-5000C; performance when subject to smoke from burning organic materials (natural rubber, neoprene, miscellaneous plastics). Such studies are relevant to possible accidental fires in a plutonium laboratory