Effect of Negative Air Ions on Fog and Smoke

A negative electric discharge voltage generator (NAI Generator) was designed and used to investigate the possibility of reducing (neutralizing) fog, dhoop smoke, and vehicle smoke collected in closed glass containers. The experiment was carried out in a dark room, and two identical glass containers were used. Various sensitivity tests were carried out with fog and smoke. Light intensity was measured for each run as a function of time with and without a negative air ion generator. Negative air ions attach to particulate matter to enhance visibility. At a high negative ion emission rate, the particle mobility becomes sufficient so that particle migration results in their deposition on walls and other indoor surfaces. The performance characteristics of the negative electric discharge generator designed in this work, which produces uni-polar ions by corona discharge at a relatively high emission rate, were evaluated. This device, if operated continuously for six minutes, resulted in the removal of about 93% to 97% of the particles in the glass container, in addition to the natural decay effect. The rate of change of particle removal was higher for fog than for smoke. This study demonstrates that it is possible to neutralize and reduce the concentration of fog and smoke to a significant degree using negative air ions, resulting in increasing visibility in a closed chamber.