The post discusses the construction of a car air ionizer circuit which can be used for cleansing the atmosphere of car interior from smoke, pollution, dust particles, bad odor, pollen particles etc. The circuit was requested by Mr. Edalcor Zuproc.
The Circuit Concept
In one of my previous posts we saw how simply a home air ionizer circuit can be built using a handful of capacitors and diodes. The unit works directly on our domestic mains outlet due to the availability of mains power.
The same circuit can be converted to function as a car air ionizer circuit by adding a converter stage to the above circuit.
The converter stage is a simple square wave inverter which converts 12V DC into the required 220V AC for operating the ionizer circuit.
As explained in my previous article, the basic design of the ionizer is taken from the Cockroft-Walton Ladder Network which involves a series. parallel connection of many diodes and high voltage capacitors.
How it Works
When powered with mains voltage the arrangement creates a push pull effect inside the circuit which results in stepping up of the voltage across the subsequent stages. At the far end of the ladder network this stepped up voltage may be as high as 4kV.
For obtaining the fundamental ionizing effect which is supposed to be having many health benefits the stepped up voltage should reach about -4kv.
At this potential, the free end of the radiator tip release negative ions by losing an electron into the atmosphere.
These ions being negatively charged attract everything that's neutral or positively charged.
Dust particles or any suspended particle in the air is by nature a neutral element and therefore when these particles collide with the negatively charged ions, they instantly stick with these ions.
The ions continue colliding with the atmospheric particles until each ion become loaded with these unwanted particles and become too heavy to float. When this happens the ions either get attached to the nearest wall or drop on the floor.
In this way all pollutants are neatly cleansed away from the air by the ionizer unit.
How to Build this Car Inonizer
In the diagram below we can see the circuit to be made up of two distinct stages. The section at the extreme left is the inverter stage, while the section on the right of the transformer is the ionizer stage.
The two stages should be constructed separately on two different boards and tested separately before integrating together.
The ionizer circuit stage which consists mainly of capacitors and diodes looks to be an easy arrangement to assemble, however the entire configuration is quite sensitive to bad solder or leakages through flux deposits.
Even a slightest bit of mistake can render the circuit unresponsive.
All the connections should be made with utmost care, making sure there's no dry solder or flux deposits in between the joined tracks.
The ionizer stage may be tested by powering it with 220V AC at home.
Be extremely careful as the entire circuit is directly linked with mains potential and can inflict lethal shock if touched without precaution. The procedures are explained in this room air ionizer article
The inverter part is much easier as the design includes just a pair of transistor and a few resistors. The transformer is a small 12-0-12V 500 mA type. After making it, power it with a DC 12V source and check the output, it should provide around 220V AC.
For the final testing, the above inverter output AC may be applied to the input of the ionizer circuit for acquiring the required ionizing effect of release of ions across the extreme tip of the ionizer circuit.
Circuit Diagram
Apisith L. says
Hello ! Mr. Swagatam
I would like to ark about “Ionizer Generator” . I want to make 18-20kv from 12vdc and low current , How to do the best Ionizer ?
Swag says
Hello Apisith, I guess 20kv won’t produce healthy ionizing effect, it will produce ozone which is bad for health…
Anonymous says
Sir,will it generator dc or ac voltage at end?
Swagatam says
It will produce AC at the output
akshay kumar says
Sir on my capacitor mpp is written.is it polystyrene capacitor or not
akshay kumar says
Can we use 2000v instead of 600 v capacitor.
Swagatam says
it will do..
akshay kumar says
Sir on my capacitor, following values are written-
"630v103k
TN944MPP"
Is it the right one .
Reply fast sir,i am working on project.
Swagatam says
Akshay, it should look as shown in this pic:
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sVqwmMJDWmo/VslT2ma7ZpI/AAAAAAAAM1c/X0roo6rcQOM/s1600/ppc.jpeg
other types might not work.
please read the following article for more info
www.brighthubengineering.com/diy-electronics-devices/78220-simple-room-air-ionizer-and-purifier/
akshay kumar says
Sorry sir,i think there is some confusion.the above image link shows a propylene capacitor and in your article you suggested to use polyster caps.
Swagatam says
Akshay, both polyester and PPC will work, I just showed the recommended one, which I had used in my prototype and worked without flaws.
Unknown says
Can we use 2000v capacitor instead of 600v.
emma aubin says
The inverter is not working the transistor keep getting hot. plz if possible could you show the arrangement on a bread board for me
Swagatam says
the circuit is not recommended for breadboard assembly please build it on a PCB….the circuit will definitely work, if done correctly.
emma aubin says
i do not have 2n2222 what is the nearest one to replace it plz
Swagatam says
use any 1 amp npn transistor…8050 will do or D1351, D880 etc
emma aubin says
thank you
Samuel Budiyanto says
Hi Swagatam, how many miliAmpere (current) draw by this circuit from 12V car battery?
When this project use continuously, how many current be need from 12V car battery?
If you can describing the current consumption, I think it can be modified to increasing the efficiency.
Regards
Swagatam says
Hi Samueal, according to me it shouldn't be more than 50mA….
deval says
Hi,
can this circuit be used to induce static electricity in objects? can this circuit replace a van der graaf generator? can I use this circuit to levitate small objects and do fun things like in fun-fly-stick?
Swagatam says
I have no idea about it, I'll have to investigate it and then I can suggest…
Clockwerk Clockwerk says
Sir can i do this on breadboard?
Swagatam says
you can try it, but for best results a PCB is only recommended.
deval says
Hello Sir,
will this negative ion generator work same way as van der graaf generator? can I use the above circuit to induce static electricity and try static electricity experiment like Fun-fly-stick with this circuit? will this circuit also act as negative ion gun?
Thanks
Abu-Hafss says
Hi Swagatam
I want to make a smallest possible adapter to power a 40W soldering iron with a 12V battery. Can I use the converter circuit mentioned above. If not, would you please recommend me one.
Swagatam says
Hi Abu-Hafss,
Yes you can try the converter stage for powering a 40 watt soldering iron, but the battery will need to be at least 15ah rated.
Abu-Hafss says
Battery is not a problem. I was just wondering if 12-0-12, 500mA transformer would be suitable to give 40W at 220V.
According to my understanding, the input is
24V x 0.5A = 12VA ≈ 12W
So, maximum we can get 12W at the output. I think a 12-0-12, 2A would be suitable to give 48W. What do you say?
If yes, do we need to upgrade the transistors?
Swagatam says
Multiply the transformer current with its voltage rating, does it equal 40 watts?? In fact the rating should be in excess to the required mark by a reasonable margin, only then it would produce the desired output.
12 x .5 = 6 watts, that's what you would get at the maximum from a 500 mA trafo.
Swagatam says
You will have to use a 5amp trafo for optimal handling.
edalcor zuproc says
good day again sir how about if you use ignition coil or cdi unit driven by pwm circuit it will produce ionizing effect the same in the above circuit? because ignition coil or cdi unit will produce high output.
Swagatam says
Hi Edalcore,
higher energy ionizer would generate more ozone (O3) than the required negative ions…which can be harmful instead of being beneficial, so it may not be recommended.
edalcor zuproc says
good day sir i will built it and its working thanks to you again for your effort of doing things that requested by your avid readers. keep it up.
Swagatam says
You are welcome Edalcore!
Bibin Edmond says
Hi swagatam,
The inverter part is not working yaar.. can u please help me.. ?
Only the two 15ohm resistors and transistors getting hot.. Really hot..! what could be the problem…?
Swagatam says
Hi Bibin,
the transformer should be a small 500mA type and the resistors must be wire wound types.
It should work because the higher rated version has been tested by me, as given here:
https://homemade-circuits.com/2012/02/how-to-make-simplest-inverter-circuit.html
Bibin Edmond says
Hi swagatam,
please check this out Breadboard setup . This was my breadboard setup for inverter. Anything wrong with this… ?
Swagatam says
Hi Bibin,
though I could not check the connections, the part spces are all perfect as per the given data,
if you are finding it difficult to get the above inverter circuit working you may trying the following design, it's even simpler, it is also a tested design.
basically we just want a low current 220V AC to feed the ionizer circuit.
https://homemade-circuits.com/2011/12/simple-20-watt-tube-emergency-light.html
Bibin Edmond says
oh.. gr8…Thanks swagatam..
Let me try this circuit…
Your immediate response is highly appreciated…!
Bibin Edmond says
Hi Swagatam,
Can we use the inverter part alone for charging mobile phones using
their charging adapters(ac to dc adapters).. ?
Swagatam says
Hi Bibin,
Yes it can be easily done, however one can simply use a 7805 IC regulator for charging cell phone with a 12V battery source.
Bibin Edmond says
oh…gr8 ok. thanks swagatam.. let me try.. !
siree says
helo sir,
In your older posts i have seen ' room ionizer cicuit..
what difference makes between the two?
I couldnt remember the older cicuit actullay but the transformer section and also the transistors are not
present..!!
andd u told the lft most section is for inverter back up… i couldnt get the clear idea of the lft most section can u explain it..
Swagatam says
hello siree,
the left section is the DC to AC inverter for converting 12VDc to 220VAC, which feeds the ionizer…. because the ionizer is designed to run at 220V AC
Anonymous says
hello sir
can I use 0.01uf 250v pp capacitor ?
in my place 0.01uf 600v pp not available
Swagatam says
No, it has to be 600V and above.
Anonymous says
thank you sir
edalcor zuproc says
OK sir, i will try and feed you back as soon as i construct. Thank You
Swagatam says
OK, great!
Inyene Etim says
Please sir the battery, is there anyway to connect a charging system to the battery incase it runs out.
Swagatam says
The supply is taken from the car battery which is constantly charged by the alternator when it's running.
mihir sahu says
Sir can u explain or show the 12v to 220v step up circuit
Swagatam says
you can read this article:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cockcroft%E2%80%93Walton_generator