人們大部分時間都在室內環境活動，暴露於生物性空氣污染物之機會也隨之增加。為維護良好室內空氣品質，需要發展一有效的生物氣膠控制技術以降低生物性危害。過濾是去除室內生物氣膠最常見的方法之一，且中醫研究已證實許多中藥萃取物具有抗菌能力，因此本研究目的即為使用中藥萃取物披覆於聚丙烯濾材，來探討控制室內生物氣膠之可行性。本研究選用中藥黃芩萃取物來調理濾材，利用氣膠產生器霧化微生物懸浮液以產生生物氣膠，再進行過濾前後生物氣膠採樣、培養與菌落數計數以評估黃芩萃取物披覆濾材對生物氣膠之過濾效能。實驗變因包含兩種黃芩萃取物濃度、濾材種類(帶電與不帶電)、生物氣膠種類(細菌三種及真菌兩種)及相對濕度(30~70%)。研究結果顯示披覆中藥會去除濾材上的靜電，導致未調理之靜電濾材對生物氣膠去除效率高於黃芩調理濾材。在相對濕度50%條件下，黃芩有助於提升不帶電濾材對大腸桿菌、金黃色葡萄球菌、枯草芽孢桿菌內孢子、酵母菌及青黴菌孢子生物氣膠之去除效率。黃芩調理濾材對生物氣膠之去除率明顯高於未調理濾材，且隨黃芩苷濃度及相對濕度之增加而增加。本研究發展之中藥黃芩萃取液披覆濾材能增加去除生物氣膠活性，中藥黃芩結合濾材是一有潛力應用於室內生物氣膠控制之技術。 People typically spend most of their time indoors. The probabilities of exposure to indoor air biocontaminants are increasing. It is required to develop an effective bioaerosol control method to reduce biohazards. Filtration is one of the most widely used methods to remove bioaerosols. Chinese medical studies have verified that many Chinese herbal extracts have antimicrobial activity against microorganisms. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to use extract of one Chinese herb coated on polypropylene fibrous filter to explore control feasibility of indoor bioaerosols.The extract of Scutellaria Baicalensis was chosen to coat on fibrous filter. Polydisperse bioaerosols was generated from a microbial suspension liquid using a Collison nebulizer. The filtration efficiency of Chinese herbal filters to bioaerosols was assessed by sampling, culturing, and counting the numbers of viable colony before and after filtration. The effects of several factors on filtration were investigated in this study, including Chinese herbal concentrations, filters (non-electred and electred), microbial species (bacteria and fungi), and relative humidities (30~70%).Results indicated that bioaerosol removal efficiencies by filters un-coated with Scutellaria Baicalensis were higher than by filters coated with Scutellaria Baicalensis because that the coated Chinese herb can diminish electrostatic charges on electred filters. Scutellaria Baicalensis can facilitate to elevate removal efficiencies of Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis endospores, Candida famata var. flareri, and Penicillium citrinum spores bioaerosols at the relative humidity of 70%. Bioaerosol removal efficiencies by non-electred filters coated with Scutellaria Baicalensis were apparently higher than by filters un-coated with Scutellaria Baicalensis. Bioaerosol removal efficiencies by non-electred filters were increased with the coated concentration of Scutellaria Baicalensis and relative humidity. The non-electred filter coated with extract of Chinese herbal Scutellaria Baicalensis developed in this research actually can increase the ability to reduce bioaerosol activity. Chinese herbal Scutellaria Baicalensis combined with filter is a potential method to be applied to control indoor bioaerosols.
