You Don't Need to Buy a Separate Air Filter With This!

With environmental pollution on the rise lately on a worldwide scale, it has been challenging for us to adapt to healthier living. Singapore’s air quality has been compromised mainly due to emissions from industries and motor vehicles.

Thus, initiatives have been implemented to ensure that we improve our air quality—including sustainable ideas from our very own TP students.

Meet Aileen Ooi and Siew E Ian, the duo who competed against other teams from local tertiary institutions and won the IKEA Singapore’s Young Designer Award. The Product & Industrial Design (PID) students created KYL- a cylindrical attachment to your everyday standing fan. KYL is designed with a dust filter, to produce clean and cool air, at the same time, reducing energy consumption.

Existing fans use more energy due to the build-up of dust, smoke, dirt and insects on the blades, which obstruct airflow. KYL is designed to cool residential units, using the concept from Bernoulli’s principle of ‘when the flow speed increases, the pressure decreases, causing the outgoing air to be cooler.’

KYL is aesthetically-pleasing on the outside, yet functional on the inside. It has multiple funnels shaped in triangles for efficient airflow and space maximisation.

With the motive of being environmentally friendly, the team picked out biodegradable materials. They used polypropylene plastic for the body of the attachable fan, and silicone rubber on the ends to stretch and hug the existing fans.

Aileen believes that KYL is highly applicable to the weather conditions in Singapore.

“In Singapore, most of us own a standing fan. With the incorporation of KYL, which only requires users to loop three leather straps to their existing fans, the room temperature can be reduced up to 1.5 degree Celsius.”

Additionally, users will be able to experience a refreshing sensation due to the humidity filter (with silica gel) woven into it. Indeed, a great way to enjoy cooler air, reduce the use of air-conditioners and contribute to creating an eco-friendly globe.

The duo will submit their winning concept for the upcoming global competition.

Great job and good luck!

by Kavitha Sundralingam