The use of nanoporous adsorbents in filtering media for improving indoor air quality

Methods for the production and application of filtering media with nanoporous adsorbents are revised. These materials find application in the purification of air, mainly in air conditioning and ventilation systems, to improve indoor air quality. The main recent developments in this area have been directed to reduce pressure drop, increase adsorption efficiency and improve production methods. Current trends in supporting methods are based in the application of adsorbent layers on adequate porous matrices, using binders or adhesives to immobilise nanoporous materials on the surface of support matrices. Catalytic filters, including photocatalytic and plasma systems, presented recent and important developments. These systems combine the presence of catalysts and nanoporous adsorbents to destroy pollutants by catalytic oxidation. Besides indoor air quality improvement, it is expected that applications of filtering media with nanoporous material will be extended to other important fields of air purification and a brief discussion on this topic is also presented.