How To Select A Particle Counter For My Cleanroom

By Morgan Polen, Vice President of Applications Technology

Often, the selection of a particle counter for use in a cleanroom is done based upon the specifications of the instrument and the purchase price.

Before getting into the details of the specifications, it is important to look at how the instrument will be used, the environments in which it will be used and who will be using the instrument. Without this information taken into consideration, a less than optimal choice of particle counter for the application could be made.

• In what type of environment will the particle counter be used? Will it be used in an ISO Class 3 Cleanroom for routine particle counting or will it be used for verifying that a flow bench is operating prior to a critical process?
• What type of data is the particle counter expected to collect? Will this information be recorded as simple pass/fail data or will the information have to be logged into a spreadsheet or database?
• Will the operator be carrying the particle counter around and placing it on a critical work surface or will the instrument be cart mounted?
• Will this particle counter be used to certify cleanrooms and travel from location to location?
• Will the particle counter be used to monitor the cleanroom on a continuous basis? Is the particle counter intended to interface with a Facility Monitoring System (FMS)?