How are cleanrooms categorized?

Cleanrooms are categorized based on the level of airborne particulate contamination present in the environment, which is measured using specific standards, such as ISO 14644. This classification system assigns cleanrooms to different ISO classes, ranging from ISO Class 1 (the cleanest, with the lowest allowable particle count) to ISO Class 9 (the least clean, with a higher allowable particle count).

Overview of Cleanrooms

A cleanroom is a dedicated space where airborne particles, microorganisms and chemical contaminants are significantly reduced under specific environmental conditions through strict air purification and temperature and humidity control. It is widely used in industries that require highly clean and controlled environments, such as pharmaceuticals, Electronics, and food, to ensure product quality and safety.

Main classifications of cleanrooms

Cleanrooms can be categorized from a number of dimensions, including industry classification, cleanliness level, temperature and humidity control requirements and building structure.

Classification by industry

• Food clean room

  Specialized for food processing and packaging, to meet food safety standards, to prevent microbial contamination and foreign body mixing.

• Electronic Clean Room

  Mainly used for the manufacturing of electronic products such as Semiconductors and integrated circuits, requiring extremely low particulate matter and static electricity control to ensure product reliability.

• Medical device clean room

  Provides a dust-free environment for the production and packaging of medical devices to ensure product sterility and safety.

• Pharmaceutical clean room

  Used for the research and development, production and packaging of pharmaceuticals, strictly controlling the content of microorganisms and particles in the air to ensure the quality of pharmaceuticals.

• New energy clean room

  It is used in the production and research of new energy materials to prevent the influence of external pollution on the performance of materials.

Classification from cleanliness level

Cleanrooms are usually categorized according to ISO standards, and there are several types of cleanrooms:

• ISO 5 Clean room:The number of particles allowed is extremely low, and is suitable for environments with extremely high cleanliness requirements, such as semiconductor manufacturing.

• ISO 6 Clean room:Suitable for industries with high cleanliness requirements, such as biopharmaceuticals and electronics.

• ISO 7 Cleanroom:Suitable for most pharmaceutical and electronics industries with stricter controls, but slightly lower than ISO 5 and ISO 6.

• ISO 8 Cleanroom:Relatively loose requirements for cleanliness, suitable for general industrial production and scientific research.

Classification from temperature and humidity control requirements

According to the different temperature and humidity control, the clean room can be divided into the following categories:

• Constant temperature cleanroom

  Maintains a constant temperature and is suitable for temperature-sensitive processes and products.

• Constant humidity cleanroom

  With constant humidity control to ensure that products and processes are carried out under optimum humidity conditions.

• Ordinary cleanroom (non-constant temperature and humidity)

  Without strict control of temperature and humidity, it is suitable for occasions with relatively loose environmental requirements.

Classification from building structure

The building structure of the clean room can also be categorized, mainly including:

• Purification of color steel plate structure clean room

  The use of color steel plate as the main material, with good sound insulation and heat preservation performance.

• Stainless steel frame clean shed

  Using stainless steel frame, corrosion-resistant, suitable for more demanding environments.

• Aluminum profile frame clean room

  Lightweight structure, easy to install and adjust, suitable for small and medium-sized Cleanrooms.

• Soft Curtain Clean Room

  The use of soft materials as partitions facilitates the entry and exit of personnel and goods, and is suitable for temporary clean environments.

• Acrylic Sheet Clean Room

  Transparent material suitable for cleanroom environments where internal operations need to be observed.

Cleanrooms can be categorized in a variety of ways, and reasonable choices are made based on different application needs and environmental standards. Understanding the classification of cleanrooms helps to design and build cleanrooms that meet specific industry standards to ensure product quality and safety. In practical applications, researchers and developers should choose the right type and structure of cleanroom according to actual needs to meet the high standards of production and research.