Although both the fresh air booster cabinet and the activated carbon adsorption cabinet are related to air treatment, they have significant differences in core functions, working principles, and application scenarios, as follows:
I. Core Functions and Design Objectives
Fresh air booster cabinet
The core function is to introduce and purify fresh outdoor air, while maintaining positive indoor pressure through pressurization to improve indoor ventilation and air quality. Its design objective is to address the issues of “insufficient air circulation” and “intrusion of external pollutants”, with a focus on “fresh air supply” and “air pressure control”.
Activated carbon adsorption cabinet
The core function is to purify the existing air in the room or specific space, removing odors and harmful gases (such as formaldehyde, VOCs, stench, etc.) in the air through the adsorption effect of activated carbon. Its design goal is to solve the problem of “existing air pollution”, with the focus on “air purification” rather than “fresh air introduction”.
Ii. Working Principle
Fresh air booster cabinet
Fresh air is extracted from outside and passes through a filtration system (such as primary and medium-efficiency filters, with some including high-efficiency filters) to remove particulate matter, dust, pollen, etc.
The filtered fresh air is pressurized by the fan and sent into the room.
By increasing pressure to create positive indoor pressure, it prevents unclean outdoor air from seeping in through the gaps of doors and Windows, while simultaneously pushing the stale indoor air to be discharged through the exhaust system.
Core logic: “Introduce clean fresh air + pressurize to prevent pollution + replace indoor air.”
Activated carbon adsorption cabinet
Usually, for indoor circulating air (or air near local pollution sources), air is drawn into the equipment by a fan.
When air flows through the activated carbon filter screen, the porous structure of activated carbon adsorbs organic gases, odor molecules, etc. in the air.
The purified air is re-discharged into the room (or directly expelled outdoors).
The core logic is: “Adsorb and remove specific pollutants in the air”, without involving the introduction of outdoor fresh air.
Iii. Differences in Core Components
Component: fresh air booster cabinet, activated carbon adsorption cabinet
The core filter materials are mainly particulate matter filters (primary, medium, and high efficiency), mainly activated carbon (or modified activated carbon)
The function of the fan emphasizes air pressure and air volume. It is mainly used for pressurized air supply and air circulation, with a relatively low requirement for air pressure
Additional features may include a heat exchanger (energy-saving), and humidity control may be combined with other filters (such as photocatalyst, HEPA)
The key points of installation include connecting the outdoor air inlet and the indoor supply air duct, which are mostly for indoor circulation, or connecting the exhaust air from local pollution sources
Iv. Differences in Application Scenarios
A typical scenario of a fresh air booster cabinet
Places that require continuous introduction of fresh air and control of air pressure, such as:
Residential and office buildings in areas with severe smog (to prevent outdoor pollution from entering);
Hospital operating rooms, precision workshops (maintaining a positive pressure clean environment);
Fire escape stairwell in high-rise buildings (pressurized smoke prevention).
A typical scenario of an activated carbon adsorption cabinet
Places where existing indoor pollutants or odors need to be removed, such as:
Newly renovated houses (absorbing formaldehyde, benzene, and other decoration pollutants);
Kitchen and bathroom (removing cooking fumes and odors);
Laboratory, spray booth (for handling local harmful gases).
V. Summary: The core differences can be summarized in one sentence
The fresh air booster cabinet is designed to “bring in fresh air from outside and increase pressure to prevent pollution”, solving the problems of ventilation and air pressure. The activated carbon adsorption cabinet is designed to “purify” the indoor air and recycle it, solving the problem of existing air pollution. The two can be used in combination (for example, the fresh air cabinet introduces clean air, and the activated carbon cabinet deals with residual odors in the room), but their functions cannot be substituted for each other.