From face masks to indoor air filters, understanding filtration mechanisms is essential for optimizing filtration efficiency with minimal pressure drop. Nevertheless, current filtration models are largely based on the assumption that the fibrous medium is homogeneous with a single fiber located at the center of individual cells. Such models have failed to take into account the non-uniformity of fibrous media in terms of the fiber diameter and orientation, and pore size distribution in real filters. In a recent paper published in the Separation and Purification Technology journal (Volume 236, 1 April 2020, 116037) that is co-authored by Prof. Jintu Fan, Head of ITC; Prof. Xiaoming Qian, ITC alumnus and Professor at Tianjin Polytechnic University; and their research students, the distribution of the fiber diameter, fiber orientation and pore size distribution in actual fibrous filters have been successfully incorporated into a filtration model based on fractal and statistical theories, which contributes to the future development of filtration materials.
The paper can be accessed by visiting: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1383586619326656