What is the Allergen Barrier Test with Airflow?

Dust samples containing a known amount of allergen are pulled across the fabric and a filter located downstream collects any allergen that passes through. The amount recovered on the filter is extracted and quantified using an ELISA kit specific for different types of allergens. The data from this allows manufacturers and retailers to directly claim allergen blocking ability for fabrics against a number of allergens.

Why should I use the Allergen Barrier Test with Airflow instead of thread count or pore size to measure my fabrics allergen barrier effectiveness?

The tendency to associate pore size or thread count with the fabrics ability to block allergens can be misleading. Pore size only loosely correlates with allergen filtration efficacy and there are a number of factors that contribute to this including van der vaals forces and allergen conformation. It is important to note that when a textile is claiming that it is an allergen barrier, it is claiming to block allergen particles such as cat allergen particles, (Fel d 1) which are less than 10µm in diameter and the mite faecal pellets, (Der p 1) which ranges between 10µm and 40µm. The Allergen Barrier Test with Airflow uses house dust with a known concentration of Derp1 and Feld1 and is therefore an accurate test to measure the fabrics allergen barrier effectiveness.

What type of fabrics do you test?

The Allergen Barrier Test with Airflow can analyse polyester, cotton, poly:cotton and micofibres, along with prototype fabrics created from novel components. Any element of the fabric can be assessed including seams, cross seams or zips. When determining a fabric’s effectiveness as an allergen barrier there is no “typical or best” type of fabric, as the type of material used and the quality of its construction create a huge amount of variability. The Allergen Barrier Test with Airflow can also be used to examine the allergen barrier characteristics of vacuum bags and filters used in household appliances.

Why do you test for Airflow?

A fabric can have a small pore size and be an effective allergen barrier, however if there is no airflow or poor air/moisture permeability the product will be unsuitable for comfort physiology and patient compliance. Therefore by using the Allergen Barrier Test with Airflow it ensures a higher quality of the finished product.

What are the laboratory quality Control samples?

Good professional practice and providing our customers with a high quality testing service is of the highest importance to airmid healthgroup.

There are two controls used in the Allergen Barrier test with Airflow which are subjected to the entire analytical procedure. The positive control fabric is a routinely used reference fabric; the fabric being tested is compared against this positive control.

The Negative control fabric is an effective barrier against allergen (100%). It is used to ascertain whether the test has been affected by any other source through the entire testing procedure, this data is not reported.

The Positive and negative control fabrics, with known airflow, are also used to calibrate the airflow through the device prior to the fabrics undergoing testing.

What are the reporting units?

The units reported on an Allergen Barrier Test with Airflow report are in two formats.

1. Total recovered allergen (nanograms (ng)) on the filter, i.e. the allergen bearing particles that passed through the fabric onto the filter located downstream.

2. The data then is reported as the percentage of allergen passage prevention compared to the laboratory positive control.

The Airflow is measured in litres per minute (L/min).

What are the limits of the test?

The amount of allergen recovered from the negative control or an effective barrier is typically Less than the Limit of Detection of the ELISA (<LOD). This represents the Limit of Detection of the ELISA which is 4ng for Der p 1 and 2ng for Fel d 1 based on a standard volume of extraction buffer.

What is your turn around time?

Airmid healthgroup provides a standard turnaround time of 15 working days. A project plan that includes turnaround time will be confirmed to the customer when a sample is received by airmid healthgroup.