Evaluation of the Edgegard laminar flow hood.
In a horizontal back-to-front flow high-efficiency particulate air-filtered laminar hood, it is shown that a Blake bottle obstruction to the air flow causes a downstream cone of turbulent air which can draw microbial contamination into the work area of the hood. In controlled experiments, contamination with T3 coliphage was reduced by a series of perforations around the open edge of the hood which eliminates the cone of turbulent air. The average reduction in phage counts was 90.75, 86.79, 91.12, and 98.92%, depending upon the site of nebulization. The phage counts were reduced in 48 of the 51 tests.
D000391:Air Microbiology / Q000295:instrumentation*; D003090:Coliphages / Q000032:analysis; D005374:Filtration