Laminar Flow Hoods are highly specialized equipment that allows obtaining a sterile and safe area for any need that is required within a laboratory. They can be Horizontal and Vertical. It basically constitutes a space; which, through a specific air treatment; allows working in an area with strict control of non-road particles. This type of equipment is used for certain processes where it is necessary to control contamination.<\/p>\n
The Typical Options<\/strong><\/p>\n Typically, these systems are used for microbiological control procedures; packaging process, sterile filling, etc. but in no way should they be used for processes involving strains of contaminating biological agents; whether they are known or not. For these cases, there are biological safety cabinets, prepared for the protection of the product\/process, the operator, and the environment.<\/p>\n The purpose of the equipment is to protect:<\/strong><\/p>\n What is laminar flow?<\/strong><\/p>\n The laminarity is generated thanks to a constant speed in the air outlet that allows homogenizing the distribution in the workplace. This is possible thanks to the placement of HEPA filters as a previous step to the air outlet. However, considering a complete room with filters of these characteristics would be extremely expensive, and the question we must ask ourselves and if we really need the entire surface covered with HEPA filters. While these systems may differ in some construction characteristics, maintaining a constant laminar airflow is critical to the goal. So it turns out that we could reduce the requirement to a clean or ultra-clean area, instead of thinking about the entire area under this condition.<\/p>\n There are two main sources of contamination in an area with specific control requirements, these can be external (associated with the environment), and internal (produced within the area either by personnel or by the type of work). In the case of the former, the reduction of pollution is achieved with the different filtering stages through which the outside air must pass until it reaches the environment. In the case of the latter, it is necessary to work on strict procedures, both for the development of the activity and for cleaning, even considering possible events.<\/p>\n\n