What does a clean room look like?

A modular clean room is a room that controls environmental parameters such as airborne particles, temperature, humidity, and pressure to achieve specific cleanliness requirements. According to the international standard ISO 14644-1, clean rooms are divided into different cleanliness levels based on the number and size of particles in the air. For example, in an ISO 5 clean room, the number of particles with a maximum particle diameter of 0.5 microns must not exceed 3,520 particles/m³. Clean rooms are widely used in industries such as Semiconductor manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and aerospace to ensure that products are produced in a pollution-free environment. The design and construction of clean rooms need to follow strict industry standards and specifications, such as China's "Standard for Control of Particle Contamination in Clean Rooms and Related Environments" (GB 50073-2013) and the international standard ISO 14644 series.

I. The difference between A Clean Room and an ordinary room

1. Air cleanliness

The air cleanliness of a clean room is controlled by a high-efficiency air filtration system to achieve the specified cleanliness level. The air in ordinary rooms contains a large amount of particulate matter and pollutants. The maximum allowable number of dust particles in clean rooms is usually several orders of magnitude lower than that in ordinary rooms. For example, in an ISO 7 Clean room, the upper limit of the number of 0.5 micron particles is 352,000/m³, which cannot be effectively monitored in ordinary rooms.

2. Temperature and humidity control

Clean rooms usually have strict temperature and humidity control systems to maintain stable environmental conditions. The temperature is generally controlled at 20-22℃, and the humidity is controlled between 30%-60%. This is particularly important compared to the temperature and humidity fluctuations in ordinary rooms, especially in industries with extremely high production quality requirements.

3. airflow design

Clean rooms use laminar or turbulent airflow design to ensure continuous flow of clean air and avoid the accumulation of pollutants. Ordinary rooms usually do not have a special airflow design, and air flow relies more on natural ventilation or air conditioning systems, making it difficult to ensure cleanliness.

4. Material selection

The walls, floors and equipment surfaces of clean rooms are usually made of smooth, easy-to-clean materials such as stainless steel and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) to reduce the growth of dust and microorganisms. The materials of ordinary rooms may not have these characteristics and are prone to dust accumulation.

II. What does the clean room look like?

1. Walls

The walls of clean rooms are usually seamless, with smooth stainless steel or fireproof panels. This design helps to reduce gaps and avoid the accumulation of dust and microorganisms. The wall color is usually white or light to facilitate light reflection and cleaning.

2. Ceiling

The ceiling design of clean rooms is usually highly efficient and equipped with HEPA or ULPA filters. The ceiling materials are mostly lightweight and easy to clean, and are equipped with removable panels for regular maintenance and air circulation. The height of the ceiling is generally above 2.4 meters to facilitate equipment installation and air circulation.

3. Floor

The floor Material of the clean room is usually made of wear-resistant and easy-to-clean epoxy or PVC materials, and the surface is smooth to avoid the accumulation of dust and dirt. The floor design is usually tilted to facilitate sewage discharge and cleaning, and the ground markings are clear to facilitate staff to identify different areas.

4. Doors and windows

The door and window design of the clean room adopts double doors or sliding doors, equipped with automatic closing devices to ensure that air is not easy to leak. Doors and windows usually use highly transparent materials, such as double-layer tempered glass, to facilitate observation of the internal environment while ensuring good isolation performance.

III. Clean room industry application

Clean rooms are mainly used in multiple industries to ensure product quality and safety. The following are several major application areas:

1. Semiconductor manufacturing

In the production of semiconductor chips, the environmental requirements of clean rooms are extremely strict, usually requiring ISO level 5 or higher to prevent the impact of particulate matter on the chip.

2. Pharmaceutical industry

Clean rooms are used for the production and packaging of drugs, and must comply with the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) for pharmaceuticals to ensure sterility and prevent contamination.

3. Medical devices

Cleanroom environments can effectively ensure that the production process of medical devices is pollution-free and maintain the safety and effectiveness of products. Cleanrooms that meet ISO 13485 standards are a prerequisite for medical device manufacturing, ensuring that products are produced in a strictly controlled environment.

4. Aerospace

In the aerospace field, cleanrooms are used to assemble and test spacecraft and their components. Due to the extremely high sensitivity of spacecraft to particles and contaminants, cleanrooms are usually required to reach ISO6 or higher to ensure the reliability and safety of equipment.

5. Food processing

Some high-end food processing plants also have cleanrooms to ensure hygiene during the production process and product safety. Especially in the production of biological products and functional foods, the application of cleanrooms can effectively reduce the risk of microbial contamination.

6. OptoElectronics and laser manufacturing

: In the manufacturing process of optoelectronic products, the use of cleanrooms can prevent optical components from being contaminated, thereby affecting the performance of the product. The optoelectronics industry usually requires a clean environment of ISO5 or higher.

List of related specifications

The following are the main domestic and international standards and specifications related to the design, construction and operation of clean rooms:

| Standard/Specification Name | Number/Version | Description |

|------------------------------------------|-------------------|-------------------------------------------|

| International Cleanroom Standard | ISO 14644 | International Standard for Cleanrooms and Related Controlled Environments |

| Chinese Cleanroom Standard | GB 50073-2013 | Chinese Standard for Particulate Contamination Control in Cleanrooms and Related Environments |

| Good Manufacturing Practice for Pharmaceuticals | GMP | Environmental, Facility and Operation Requirements for Cleanrooms in the Pharmaceutical Industry |

| Medical Device Quality Management System Standard | ISO 13485 | Relevant Standards for Cleanrooms in the Medical Device Industry |

| Aerospace Cleanroom design Standard | NASA-STD-6001 | Design and Operation Standards for Cleanrooms in the Aerospace Industry |

| Optoelectronic Equipment Manufacturing Standard | IPC-2221 | Cleanroom Design Standards Related to Optoelectronic Equipment |

| Food Safety Management System Standard | ISO 22000 | Management requirements for clean environment in the food industry |

Through the above analysis, it can be seen that although the clean room may be similar to an ordinary room in appearance, its internal environment control, design and application areas are significantly different. The construction and maintenance of the clean room need to follow strict standards and specifications to ensure that production and R&D activities are carried out in a high-cleanliness environment, thereby effectively ensuring the quality and safety of the product.