Sharp Air Purifier Review – Efficacy of Plasmacluster Ion Technology

Thursday, March 11th, 2010 at 2:15 am

Tiny is mighty may well describe the little dynamo that lies at the heart of Plasmacluster Ion technology. Our Sharp air purifier review zeroes in on the enriched high concentration Plasmacluster Ion generator. Whilst it measures only 57mm by 28.5mm by 15.5mm, this generator is responsible for the reactive agents, without which the air purifier is worthless.

Synopsis of Plasmacluster Ion Technology

Positive and negative voltages are applied to discharge electrodes inside the Plasmacluster Ion generator to produce plasma. Increasingly, plasma is accepted as the 4th state of matter, after the commonly known gas, liquid, solid. Comprising electrons that roam freely without bondage to any molecule or atom, plasma exists in a partly ionized gaseous condition. Disintegration of water molecules that permeate plasma lead to the creation of negative ions (oxygen) and positive ions (hydrogen). Distinct and stable Plasmacluster Ions are created when atmospheric water molecules form clusters around the hydrogen and oxygen ions. Ultra reactive and extremely unstable hydroxyl radicals are created as soon as Plasmacluster Ions come into contact with any pathogens. This characteristic causes the hydroxyl radical to combine with hydrogen atoms on the surface membrane of the pathogen. The outcome; harmless water as a by-product and dead pathogens. A perfect solution! But is it fact or fiction?

Plasmacluster Ion – Fiction or Fact?

A serious Sharp air purifier review has to resolve the most basic doubt – are Plasmacluster Ions science fiction or scientific fact? In common with many other nanotechnology products, Plasmacluster Ions are invisible to the human eye. And the individual air purifier user has no means to verify its authenticity. Obvious alternative authentication means would be to rely on tests results of Plasmacluster Ion experiments. There are 2 ways to do this, in the real world or efficiency testing or in the laboratory or efficacy testing.

Addressing these very real concerns of consumers instead of skirting the issue is testament to Sharp’s long track record of successes. To deal with this, Sharp introduced academic marketing. This is a collaborative effort between Sharp and academia with the objective of reputable institutions testing and producing scientific data to confirm the claims made with regard to Plasmacluster Ions. The data forms the basis of new products introduced to the market. Sharp has fine-tuned the definition of effectiveness into efficacy and efficiency. Efficacy testing has been the focus from the year 2000 to July 2009. Efficiency testing in conjunction with corporate end users of Plasmacluster Ion technology is the current focus.

Plasmacluster Ion – Authentication at Cellular Level

Digging deeper for this Sharp air purifier review, we believe that it is Sharp’s strategy to focus on efficacy and efficiency testing to become the leader. On 17 November 2004, Sharp announced the results of studies by Professor Gerhard Artmann of the Department of Cell Biophysics and Bioengineering, University of Applied Sciences, Germany. A leading authority in the field of cellular engineering, Professor Artmann through the use of an electron microscope confirmed that Plasmacluster Ions damaged more than 60 protein types on the cell membrane of pathogens leading to inactivation of the cells (both bacteria and viruses were tested).

A finding of great significance was that the pathogens’ cell DNA is not affected by Plasmacluster Ions which do not pass through the surface membrane. The fact that Plasmacluster Ions annihilate pathogens without having to destroy their DNA is claimed as an advantage over some other air purification technologies that specifically rely on DNA destruction. The danger to users of other air purification technologies being exposed to cancer from DNA damage was implied.

Plasmacluster Ion – Efficacy Tests

This current Sharp air purifier review puts on one page the efficacy tests on various pathogens performed by organizations engaged by Sharp. Conducted over the years from September 2000 to July 2009, the tests have proven that Plasmacluster Ions are effective in removing 28 kinds of harmful airborne microorganisms. Of the virulent microorganisms, the most important ones are MRSA (notorious for causing mortifying infections in hospitalized patients), the terrifying SARS virus, the potentially deadly H5N1 avian flu virus and a variant of the H1N1 virus that surfaced in Mexico in 2009.

Among others, viruses annihilated by Plasmacluster Ions also include the polio virus and the coxsackie virus which is blamed for the common cold. Also annihilated are candida, pseudomonas, serrata bacterium, sarcina, escherichia coli, bacillus subtilis, micrococcus, enterococcus, white staphylococcus and staphylococcus. Mites, allergens and pollen have also been effectively dealt with together with fungi like cladosporium, penicillium, stachybotrys, alternaria, mucor and aspergillus.

The following organizations conducted tests on Plasmacluster Ion technology:

- Asthma Society of Canada

- University of Lübeck, Germany

- CT&T, Aachen University of Applied Science, Germany

- Harvard School of Public Health, USA

- Retroscreen Virology, Ltd., London, UK

- Seoul University, Korea

- Ishikawa Health Service Association, Japan

- Graduate School of Advanced Sciences of Matter, Hiroshima University, Japan

- Kitasato Research Center of Environmental Sciences, Japan

- Kitasato Institute, Medical Center Hospital, Japan

- Shanghai Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, China

The last reported efficacy test was reported on 27 July 2009 involving the Osaka City University Medical School validating the inhibitory power of Plasmacluster Ions on allergic reactions caused by mite allergens or mite dust (mite feces and dead mites).

Wrapping up our Sharp air purifier review in relation to efficacy testing, we place great importance on the OECD GLP (Good Laboratory Practices) status of the testing organizations as the test results attain international recognition. GLP is an international standard that must be renewed every three years. Absolutely valuable yet critics of air purification technologies and academic marketing choose to overlook this factor completely. Another ignored fact is that the work of a GLP laboratory can definitely be scientifically peer reviewed. The all-important scientific peer review, as we know, is the key missing piece in the puzzle of air purification technologies, including Plasmacluster Ion technology!

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