Laminar Air Flow Cabinet ‒ Definition, Working Principle, Types & More

It is said some microbiology students take up the subject solely to experiment in a laminar airflow
cabinet. I don’t know if that is true, but a laminar air flow hood is certainly an extremely important piece
of laboratory furniture, mostly seen in microbiology or medical labs. Come, let us explore what is
laminar airflow, why we use laminar airflow cabinets, and how it works.

Definition of Laminar Air Flow

To be frank, the words “laminar air flow” does not indicate any furniture, but a principle in fluid
mechanics. When air moves through a given space in both unified direction and velocity, it is said that it
has achieved laminar air flow. It comes from the word ‘lamina’ that means that the air moves as one
uniform body.

A laminar air flow cabinet, also known as a tissue culture hood, clean bench, biological safety cabinet, or
simply laminar hood, is a work surface enclosed in a boxlike structure mechanized to flood the inside of
the enclosure with clean, sterilized air flowing in a laminar manner. It looks something akin to a fume
hood , but works the opposite way.

What’s the difference between a fume hood and a laminar airflow cabinet?

A fume hood sucks air out of the work area. A laminar airflow cabinet sucks clean air into the work area.

Why Do We Use Laminar Airflow Cabinets

In bioscience labs, we often have to work with sensitive cultures and other things that are very sensitive
to things floating in the air. A small volume of air (just the amount we inhale) can have millions of
floating particles and microbes in it ‒ you don’t want that in your precious culture. So, in order to keep
your work safe from these airborne contaminants, you have to work only in a sterile, filtered air
environment. Thus comes the enclosed work surface with the filtered air flow.

This airflow has to be laminar in nature, because normally air flows in a very irregular nature. Normal ‒
that is, turbulent air flow creates lots of eddies and vortices that wreak havoc on any sterile-air
environment. They can gather and deposit particles from outside air on your beloved hard-worked
culture and screw up your whole result. Thus, we drown the work area in air that moves as one body, in
uniform velocity and direction, so that eddies and vortices don’t form. That is exactly what laminar
airflow is.

Key takeaway: A Laminar Air Flow prevents samples and cultures from getting contaminated by
providing a clean-air work environment.

How a Laminar Airflow Cabinet Works

The basic idea of a laminar airflow cabinet is to provide a safe, sterile, filtered air environment. To that
end, it uses the following parts:

Enclosure

Work Surface

Prefilter/filter pad

Blower/fan

HEPA Filter

UV Lamp

These parts come together to make a laminar airflow cabinet. Using the blower or fan, the device sucks
in room air from the front or top of the device. The air first passes through the prefilter or filter pad,
which captures large dust particles from the air. Then it goes through the HEPA filter, which filters out all
the fine particles and microbes. That filtered air then pours into the enclosure and washes over the work
surface, clearing it of any suspended particles and microbes. You can use the UV lamp to further sterilize
the work area by bathing it in deadly rays.
The air flow is kept laminar by way of constructing the device carefully, so that all parts of the air inside
the enclosure flows in straight lines parallel to each other, in the same direction. The airflow can be
horizontal or vertical in manner, depending upon what should be the purpose of the sterile hood ‒ to
keep the sample safe or to keep the user safe.

Laminar Air Flow Cabinet 1

A vertical laminar airflow cabinet provided by Labkafe

Parts of a Laminar Air Flow Cabinet

1. Enclosure

This is basically a box which provides the voluminous area to act as a sterile environment. It is generally
a stainless steel cuboid box, with a glass shutter in front. The enclosure protects the sterile environment
created inside the cabinet by insulating it and separating it from the outside environment.

The material of the box is often stainless steel, because it is very resistant to biological contamination
and is easy to clean, without requiring any special coating or such. The glass (or fiberglass) shutter in
front of the box opens full or half by means of hinges or sliders, and so lets the user access the work
surface.

2. Work Surface

Also made of stainless steel, this is the flat table for you to work on inside the enclosure. If it is a vertical
laminar airflow, then the work surface may have holes in it (or be a hard net-like structure) to let the air
pass through. You can put your work apparatus on this surface and carry out sensitive tasks like tissue
culture, electronic wafer formation, bacterial culture, and more.

The material of the work surface is often stainless steel too, for similar reasons as above. It is resistant to
biological contamination, it is easy to disinfect, and it does not require any special coating. It is also
sturdy and will support mostly any lab equipment you can use in a microbiology lab.

3. Pre-filter
The pre filter or filter pad is the first line of defense against impure air, in a laminar airflow cabinet. It sits
in touch with the outside environment directly, generally behind a mesh or net or grill, either on top of
the cabinet or below the work surface facing the front.

The pre-filter is basically a large piece of washable sheet, folded a few times over to make it thick. It has
large fibrous pores that can trap suspended particles in air about 5 microns or bigger. It acts as the
primary filter that scrubs out the air by interception method of filtering.

The main filter in a laminar airflow cabinet can’t handle large dust particles, it will get dirty too fast. This
is why they put a washable and reusable pre-filter first in the path of the airflow.

4. Fan or Blower

The actual machine responsible for the airflow, the fan or blower sucks the air in through the pre-filter
and presses it through the HEPA filter. It sits in between these filter pads and controls the airflow. It can
come in different shapes and sizes depending upon your model, and in different powers as well. It
makes a fair amount of noise while running.

5. HEPA Filter

The most important part of a laminar airflow cabinet is the HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filter
that sits right next to the Enclosure, separated only by a grill or mesh. If the device is horizontal airflow
type, then the HEPA filter will be at the back of the device; and if it is vertical airflow type then it will be
on top of the enclosure. This filter acts as the final filter that cleans out the air as completely as
reasonably possible, ridding the air of particles and microbes down to 0.3 microns in size. It works in the
following three mechanisms:

Interception: this way, large particles get stuck to the fibers in the HEPA filter.

Impaction: this way, medium-sized particles get tossed about in contradictory micro airstreams and get
caught by the fibers.
Diffusion: the impure particles move in a brownian motion and in the way get trapped within the filter
fibers.

6. UV Lamp

While the HEPA filter does supply quite well-filtered air, it isn’t completely sterile. Microbes less than 0.3
microns in size get passed through the filter, and some outside air does get in somehow. Even the
surfaces of the enclosure and work area can have microbes stuck to them. To clean them out, we need
something more than just air pressure ‒ we need a killer ray.

The UV lamp supplies just this. It radiates ultraviolet light, which is carcinogenic in nature. It causes cells
to grow unnaturally and destroys living protein. Water purifiers use the same idea, actually. The lamp
not only sterilizes the air and the surfaces inside the enclosure, but you can also put your glassware and
plasticware like beakers, test tubes, petri dishes etc. on the workbench to get them sterilized.

7. Illumination

The manufacturer generally puts a fluorescent or LED tube inside the enclosure on the top surface so
that you can see what you are doing in the box.

8. Controls

The controls for the fan, the UV lamp, and the light switches and knobs should be outside on a single
control pad. Sometimes, the maker may provide a foot switch to control the airflow while working.

Don’t turn on the blower and the UV lamp at once! The UV lamp needs the air inside the cabinet to
stand still if it is to work properly.

Types of Laminar Airflow Cabinets

There are mainly two kinds of laminar hoods depending upon the direction of the airflow ‒ vertical and
horizontal.
Vertical Laminar Airflow

In this more common, compact type, the air flow is from top to bottom. The filters and the fan/blower is
mounted on top of the device. The air can flow out the front of the enclosure after hitting the work
surface, or the work surface can be perforated to let the air pass through and feed back up top into the
primary filter.

Since the air does not hit the user directly, this type of cabinets are taken as a safer bet for the user and
you can perform potentially dangerous experiments in a vertical laminar airflow. However, it is not
suitable for running while working, since the air hits the apparatus directly through the open top and
can contaminate the samples.

Horizontal Laminar Airflow

These are rather large and specious, and mount the HEPA filter at the back of the cabinet. The airflow is
from back to front directly at the user, and can’t operate without the front glass sash open. The pre-
filter sits flush with the front wall of the box underneath the work surface and sucks air from the front.
The blower is also at the bottom portion.

Since the aireflow directly hits the user, the horizontal laminar airflow cabinets are not suitable for
potentially dangerous operations. However, where protecting the sample is mandatory and airflow has
to be provided while working, these work best since these provide more laminar air layers tangent to
the open sides of labware.

How to Use a Laminar Airflow Cabinet

Clean the area around the device so that no heavy dust gets sucked into the filters.

Clear the work area of any previous apparatus or glassware or debris.

Keep the lid open (if required for airflow), and turn on the fan.

Run the airflow for 10-15 minutes.

Open the lid and clean all the inner surfaces with 70-90% pure alcohol.

Close the lid tightly and turn on the UV lamp. Stay away!
Keep the UV lamp on for 15 minutes.

Turn off the UV lamp and turn on the interior light.

You can start your work now.

If your work takes a long time, remember to change the air periodically by running the blower once in a
while. If your work is potentially dangerous, keep the lid closed before you turn on the fan.

Make sure you are wearing all protective lab gear (lab coat, long gloves, face mask and safety glasses)
before you operate a laminar hood.

Pros & Cons of a Laminar Airflow Cabinet

Advantages

Eco-friendly ‒ does not release toxic gas to the outside environment unlike fume hoods

Easy to maintain ‒ just wash the pre-filter when it gets dirty.

Comparatively cheap ‒ they are simple machines and don’t eat up your pocket.

Portable ‒ most laminar airflow cabinets are lightweight and have castor wheels on the bottom, so you
can reposition them easily.

They provide a very clean and sterile atmosphere in which you can do sensitive work.

Vertical laminar workflows also protect the user from dangerous contaminations.

Disadvantages

Working while the flow is turned on creates disruptive air columns with eddies and vortices, which
defeats the purpose of the device.

Horizontal laminar air flows blow fumes and contaminated air directly at the user’s face.

Without proper handling, these devices fail fast and hard.

Where Can We Use Laminar Airflow Cabinets

In the electronics industry, things are getting smaller every day and now they have to work with
microscopic items and circuits. Naturally, they are sensitive to dust particles in air which are generally
many times bigger than the component. The effect is like a rock falling on a pencil. To prevent this, most
electronics labs use horizontal laminar workflow cabinets (since there is nothing to protect the user
from).

Some libraries and museums also use laminar airflow cabinets to work on very old manuscripts or
artifacts.

Do’s and Don’ts of Laminar Airflow

Do wear safety glasses, long protective gloves and lab coats while operating a laminar workflow cabinet.

Do not use the UV light and the airflow functions simultaneously (some advanced models may actually
have electronic blocks that prevent this).

Do sterilize all components and apparatus present inside the device before and after use.

Do not keep any body part inside or even close to the cabinet while the UV light is on!

Do irradiate everything inside the safety hood with the UV lamp before and after use.

Do not turn on the UV light while a process is ongoing in the cabinet.

To Sum Up

A Laminar airflow cabinet is an extremely useful lab furniture and instrument when you need to do
some work so very sensitive that even outside air can damage it. It provides a sterile, clean atmosphere
inside the cabinet where you can work with sensitive materials like tissue culture or electronic wafers.
Comparatively cheap and portable, laminar air flow cabinets are light in weight and movable, and are
eco-friendly as well. But do make sure you follow the operating manual to the letter, and wear proper
protective lab clothing while operating the hood. When buying one, choose the vertical or horizontal
type carefully depending upon the nature of your work.

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