ULPA Filter vs. HEPA Filter: What's the Difference & Why Does It Matter?

by Radhika Chawla Marketer

Indoor air pollution is a severe problem in India. There are numerous dust particles, pollens, bacteria and contaminants in the air that can cause serious health risks and allergies. However, a commercial environment of pharmaceutical, electronics and medical industries require a controlled environment free of such airborne particles.

Therefore, high-efficiency air filters like HEPA and ULPA are employed to maintain a safe environment and prevent cross-contamination. High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) and Ultra-Low Particulate Air (ULPA) are two of the most common filters used in industries such as automobiles, biomedical, pharmaceutical, hospitals, and semiconductor manufacturing industries have a requirement of safe and filtered air.

Both the HEPA and ULPA filters have many similarities, but they have some key differences too.

Similarities between HEPA & ULPA Filters:

Both the filters use dense fibers to create a fine mesh to filter the contaminated air.
Same filtration process: diffusion, interception, and inertial impaction.
Both the filters do not remove odours and gasses and may require an activated carbon filter.

Difference between HEPA & ULPA Filters:

HEPA the filter removes airborne particles 0.3 µm in diameter and ULPA filter removes 0.1 µm in diameter.
HEPA filters have 99.995% efficiency and ULPA filters have 99.999% efficiency in removing airborne particles.
The ULPA air filter media is denser and allows 20 to 50% less airflow than HEPA filters.
HEPA provides ISO Class 3 and ULPA provides ISO Class 5 filtration.
HEPA has a lifespan of up to 10 years and ULPA can be effective for 5 to 8 years.
HEPA requires less energy than ULPA filters.
HEPA filters can be combined with pre-filters to trap larger particles before they come into contact with the main filter to increase efficiency.
Overall, ULPA filters are less efficient at reducing the airborne particulate in a typical room.

HEPA and ULPA filters are critical in preventing cross-contamination, infections and allergens from entering residential and commercial environments. Apart from the production of medicines, electrical equipment, biomedical matters, etc., there are various pieces of equipment too that require a clean an environment such as:

Laminar floor hoods
Biosafety Safety Cabinets (BSC)
Containment gloves boxes
Ductless exhaust fume hoods
Closed-loop filtration glove box

Different ULPA & HEPA air filter media can be used in the filters as per the required airflow and filtration in any industry. To buy high-quality and high-efficiency filter media, click here HVAC Air Filter Media.