Exclusive Distributor, Innotec Hong Kong, tested the Portascanner® AIRTIGHT at a pre-fabricated negative pressurisation wardroom, which was used during the COVID19 pandemic to facilitate patients infected with SARS-COV19.
Negative Pressurisation Wardrooms
Negative pressure wardrooms are specialised hospital rooms designed to contain and control the spread of infections. Also known as isolation rooms, they are designed to keep patients with infections, or those particularly susceptible to infection, in a controlled environment, separated from staff, other patients, and visitors.
Airtight integrity of these rooms is vital to ensure the safety of the patient in the room and those outside it. By conducting air tightness testing and air pressure testing, the integrity of the negative pressure room’s building envelope can be assessed and any air leakage can be identified. These tests involve measuring the air permeability of the room, evaluating the efficiency of the construction process, and identifying areas of concern where uncontrolled air leakage may be occurring.
As with most forms of engineering, it is usually the moving parts which wear out first, and the leak sites will tend to manifest themselves around the doors and windows, which are opened and closed. To maintain a controlled environment, the rooms must be checked for air leaks regularly to comply with regulatory standards, and for peace of mind.
It is important to be able to locate and measure the physical size of leaks and to have some idea of the potential air flow rates and air permeability that might result. It is not just a high total airtightness that matters; if a small but significant amount of airflow is concentrated in one area, that can be a problem. Even assuming a known leak with a constant physical size, the air that moves through it over any time period will vary too due to temperature and pressure differences. It is not the current air flow rate that matters, per se, but the potential air flow under worst-case conditions.
Case Study
The Innotec team used the Portascanner® AIRTIGHT to quantify leak sites, to ensure that the negative pressurisation system works effectively, to stop the spread of COVID19 from isolated patients.
Leak points were found within the doors in the negatively pressurised ward room:
The Portascanner® AIRTIGHT
To achieve the desired level of airtightness, it is important to embrace advanced technologies and testing methods. One such technology is the Portascanner® AIRTIGHT.
The Portascanner® AIRTIGHT is a handheld ultrasonic micro air leak detector that enables the reliable and efficient detection of any air leaks. It can be used at all stages of a building or room’s lifecycle, from construction to active use. This instrumentation uses ultrasound technology to detect and quantify air flow rates through even the smallest leak sites, providing precise and microscopic accuracy in leak identification.
By employing the Portascanner® AIRTIGHT during air tightness tests and regular inspections, trained operators can quickly and accurately assess the integrity of the building envelope, including Doors and windows.
This world-first instrument is equipment is non-invasive, highly accurate, and fast. It is able to:
- Non-disruptively identify leak sites with a microscopic level of accuracy
- Measure and quantify their cross-sectional area
- Determine the air flow rate through each leak under any range of conditions
- Calculate the room’s overall air permeability
- Store photographic and quantitative data to generate traceable, exportable reports
- Detect leaks as small as 0.06mm in diameter and quantify leaks as small as 0.5mm in diameter
By adopting this innovative technology you will be ensuring the continual airtight integrity of your facility in accordance with regulations.
For comprehensive insights on air tightness tests, speak to our team at Coltraco.
