In 2020, PNNL completed a literature search for high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter age information. HEPA filters are used in many operations to remove particulate matter from effluent exhaust streams. They are thought to degrade over time both during proper storage and during normal operational service; however, the rate at which the filters degrade remains unknown. | Progress in Nuclear Energy 139 2021 103881 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Progress in Nuclear Energy journal homepage locate pnucene Hepa filter age evaluation and estimate of nominal lifetime in nuclear facilities J. Matthew Barnett Kobe R. Schrank Mary Bliss Scott K. Cooley Pacific Northwest National Laboratory PO Box 999 - MSIN J2-25 902 Battelle Blvd. Richland WA 99352 USA A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T Keywords In 2020 PNNL completed a literature search for high-efficiency particulate air HEPA filter age information. HEPA HEPA filters are used in many operations to remove particulate matter from effluent exhaust streams. They are Filter thought to degrade over time both during proper storage and during normal operational service however the Age rate at which the filters degrade remains unknown. This brings into question if age is an adequate indicator of Statistics Compliance HEPA filter performance. Data from six previous reports were obtained from the literature search and combined to create a data set of 1600 operating filters. Filter usage was identified from multiple facilities. The various types of filters . axial flow self-contained and standard 61 61 28 cm and both separator and separatorless reported were constructed to the requirements Section FC HEPA Filters or Section FK Special HEPA Filters of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers AG-1 code. Filters were presumed to have continuously met the operational criteria and in particular passed both annual efficiency tests and annual differential pressure mea surements. The environmental conditions within the exhaust system were also assumed adequate for long-term filter operation. The data by the nature of the reports excludes rejected filters from quality assurance evalua tions intake or installation testing. The collective data set shows over half of were operating past the recom mended 10-year Department of Energy DOE lifetime. Data was evaluated for age .
