A system and method of treating air. Bipolar ionization is delivered to an airflow within a conduit from a tubeless ion generator. The ionized airflow may be delivered to a conditioned airspace by an HVAC system. In alternate applications, the airflow delivers ionized combustion air to an engine. The invention also includes a mounting assembly for positioning one or more ion generators into an airflow.

An air cleaning device for separating airborne particles from a flow of air is provided. The air cleaning device comprises a separating unit and an ionizing unit arranged to charge airborne particles present in the flow of air and transmit at least a major part of the charged particles towards the separating unit. The ionizing unit comprises at least one collector electrode and at least one emitter electrode. The separating unit is arranged to attract at least some of the charged particles so as to separate them from the flow of air. Further, the at least one collector electrode is shaped so as to conduct at least a portion of the flow of air and has a spherically curved inner surface and the emitter electrode is centered with respect to the spherically curved inner surface of the collector electrode.

An air cleaner includes: a generation unit configured to discharge an electric current by being applied with a high voltage, and generate a plurality of types of discharge products; an air-sending device configured to form a flow of air, and spray the plurality of types of discharge products generated from the generation unit to a space; an estimation unit configured to estimate an amount of dust floating in the space by selecting whether an amount of dust floating in the space is a first estimation amount smaller than a predetermined threshold or is a second estimation amount larger than or equal to the predetermined threshold and larger than the first estimation amount; and a control unit configured to control a generation amount of the plurality of types of discharge products to be generated from the generation unit based on the amount of dust estimated by the estimation unit.

A particle sensor comprises an electrostatic particle charging section and a parallel-plate particle precipitation section, and a sensor for detecting the precipitated particles to produce a sensor signal. A pre-filter is placed upstream from the particle charging section. The pre-filter characteristics are such that the sensor signal in response to entrained particles which are not filtered out by the pre-filter relates to the apparent particle number concentration N.sub.app of the particles entering the particle sensor by a calibration constant S which is less dependent on the count mean particle diameter d.sub.p,av of the particles entering the particle sensor than the dependence on d.sub.p,av that exists in the absence of the pre-filter. Thus, the dependency of the sensor signal derived from the particle deposition in the parallel-plate precipitation section on the particle size distribution (caused by incomplete particle deposition in the precipitation section) is at least partly compensated for by a pre-filter which has a suitable dependency of its filtering function on the particle size.

A flux recovery device recovers a vaporized flux being generated at a time of soldering an electronic circuit board on which electronic components are placed. The flux recovery device includes a first pipe, a dust collector, and a current controller. The first pipe causes gas including the vaporized flux to pass to the flux recovery device. The dust collector solidifies the vaporized flux passed through the first pipe and collects dust, by a plasma discharge. The current controller performs a constant current control of the plasma discharge.

An electrification apparatus for dust collection includes an electrification module configured to generate ions that are emitted to air. The electrification module comprises: a high voltage tip comprising at least one discharge tip configured to emit the ions in a direction opposite to a flow direction of the air, a conductive plate that surrounds the discharge tip and that is configured to generate an electric potential difference with the discharge tip of the high voltage tip, a lower frame that mounts the conductive plate and the high voltage tip, an upper frame that is coupled to a first side of the lower frame and that covers the conductive plate and the high voltage tip, the discharge tip protruding outward through the upper frame, and a ground mesh coupled to a second side of the lower frame.

An electro-ionic device configured for being worn on the face of a person is disclosed. The electro-ionic device includes at least two electrical conductors spaced apart from each other defining at least a portion of a respiratory pathway therebetween and a circuit configured to apply a first voltage between the two conductors during inspiration and a second voltage greater than the first voltage during expiration.

A particulate filtration apparatus for exhaust, combustion or other gases includes an enclosure for the output of a flow of such gases, prior to their release into the outside environment. An internal duct crossed by the flow and affected by a perforated conducting plate is kept at a negative electrical potential, for emission and dispersion in the duct of electrons coupled to polluting particles carried by the flow and substantially constituting the particulate, consequently giving them a negative electrical charge. Along the duct downstream of the perforated plate is an accumulation plate, kept at a positive electrical potential, for the attraction and stable adhesion of the electrically charged particles on the accumulation plate. A conducting filament at a negative electrical potential adjacent at least one opening of the perforated plate is a primary source of emission and dispersion of electrons which are coupled to particles carried by the flow.

The present invention provides methods and systems for an ion generator mounting device for application of bipolar ionization to airflow within a conduit, the device includes a housing for mounting to the conduit having an internal panel within the enclosure, and an arm extending from the housing for extension into the conduit and containing at least one opening. At least one coupling for mounting an ion generator to the arm oriented with an axis extending between a pair of electrodes of the ion generator being generally perpendicular to a flow direction of the airflow within the conduit.

A plasma purification module is described. The plasma purification module includes a first electrode plate, a second electrode plate, at least one long electrode and a catchment element. The first electrode plate is configured to be connected to a first electrode of a power supply. The second electrode plate is disposed over a surface of the first electrode plate, and is configured to be connected to a second electrode of the power supply, in which the second electrode plate has a channel. The long electrode is configured to form a discharge area. The long electrode is disposed on the surface of the first electrode plate and passes through the channel. The long electrode has a tip. The catchment element is disposed adjacent to the tip, and is configured to provide the discharge area with mist or water.