Air-filtration Media Eliminate Odors at Salt Lake City International Airport

March 1, 2001
Decaying brine shrimp found to be cause of problem

With employees at its reservations center at Salt Lake City Airport complaining of odors, Delta Air Lines was in need of an air-filtration solution.

Called in to identify the sources of the odors, Roto Aire Filter Sales & Service concluded that, aside from jet fumes from runway traffic and vehicular exhaust from ground-transportation areas typical of airports, the odors were from a natural source: the Great Salt Lake, the southeast border of which faces the center.

Located in the Great Basin, the lake has no outlet. As a result, brine shrimp and other tiny life forms wash ashore, where they are left to decay. On windy days, odors from decaying brine were infiltrating the center through three main HVAC air intakes located on the roof

Purafil offers a variety of media, each of which is chemically engineered to remove a specific gas or gaseous contaminant group. For example, Purakol™, or activated carbon, is effective at removing volatile organic compounds, which can be found in jet fumes. However, it is ineffective at removing sulfur dioxide or nitric oxide, which also can be found in jet fumes. To remove these gases, an active-oxidant-impregnated medium--Purafil® Select­--is required

Odors from decaying brine are composed primarily of amine molecules, which require both Purakol and Purafil Select for complete removal. Based on this, Roto Aire Filter Sales & Service recommended the Select CP Blend medium, a 50/50-volume blend of Purakol and Purafil Select media. Over each of the three air intakes Roto Aire Filter Sales & Service affixed a 120-in.-square, 96-in.-high filter housing containing Purafil Front Access Cells, which, in turn, contained Purafil disposable modules factory-filled with Select CP Blend media.

One hundred fifty-three Front Access Cells containing more than 500 disposable modules were installed.

Information and photo courtesy of Purafil Inc.

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JOHN VASTYAN

March 16, 2024
ASHRAE