Dr. Saint Cyr recently pointed me to great tests of air purifiers from the Shanghai Consumer Protection Bureau:

The reason this type of research is so badly needed is that Western research (like this report from Consumer Reports) focuses on allergens, not general industrial air pollution. Allergens are probably more relevant for most Americans, but for those of us living in China, particulate air pollution is the real problem. And a lot of smog is smaller than pollen:

Thus, I was excited to see research that focused on PM2.5 here in China (results here, in Chinese). In removing PM2.5, 17 out of 22 models removed more than 90% of PM2.5 in just 20 minutes in a 30-square-meter room. Pretty good!

Yet even the cheapest of the “non-famous” brands cost about 1,500 RMB. For that price, you could make 9 of my DIY filters, and that’s before eating the cost of proprietary replacement filters (US$200 a piece at IQ Air). Even with these cheaper brands, I still think consumers lack a truly affordable way to get clean air. Using the consumer bureau’s results, I calculated how much you’re paying for each percent reduction in PM2.5.

Now, their tests weren’t perfect. The biggest downside I see is that they used cigarette smoke as the PM2.5 source, rather than outside air. It’s not clear to me if cigarette smoke behaves the same as smog in filters. Also, many filters were less effective at removing the formaldehyde that they released in the room. That said, I don’t know how much formaldehyde is in the air normally.

But these results from Dr. Saint Cyr do use ambient air pollution in China (as do mine 1, 2). In tests with doors closed and the filters at their highest settings, Dr. Saint Cyr’s two Alen Air filters, Blueair, and IQ Air all got rid of at least 95% of PM .3. But the Alen Air A375 will set you back US$500 or RMB 5,000 imported in China. Here’s how to get the same results for 166 RMB.