An air sanitizer is a sanitizer that acts on airborne microbiological organisms or microorganisms. In the United States, a sanitizer is a disinfectant that is intended to disinfect or sanitize, reducing or mitigating growth or development of microbiological organisms including bacteria, fungi or viruses on inanimate surfaces in the household, institutional, and/or commercial environment and whose labeled directions for use result in the product being discharged to publicly owned treatment works (POTWs).

Unlike air purifiers, which filter or otherwise trap particles within an air circulator, air sanitizers have the ability to act on airborne microorganisms in open interior air space. A sneeze

Sneeze

A sneeze is a semi-autonomous, convulsive expulsion of air from the lungs through the nose and mouth, usually caused by foreign particles irritating the nasal mucosa...

- or cough

Cough

A cough is a sudden and often repetitively occurring reflex which helps to clear the large breathing passages from secretions, irritants, foreign particles and microbes...

-generated pathogenic aerosol

Aerosol

Technically, an aerosol is a suspension of fine solid particles or liquid droplets in a gas. Examples are clouds, and air pollution such as smog and smoke. In general conversation, aerosol usually refers to an aerosol spray can or the output of such a can...

 will take significant time to be treated by a circulating air purifier simply because air circulators are unable to treat all of the room air simultaneously. Air circulators treat a fractional room volume

Volume

Volume is the quantity of three-dimensional space enclosed by some closed boundary, for example, the space that a substance or shape occupies or contains....

 per unit time and exhaust treated air back into the room resulting in fractional air dilution. In contrast, air sanitizers that are maintained at a sufficient and homogeneous concentration (see homogeneous (chemistry)

Homogeneous (chemistry)

A substance that is uniform in composition is a definition of homogeneous. This is in contrast to a substance that is heterogeneous.The definition of homogeneous strongly depends on the context used. In Chemistry, a homogeneous suspension of material means that when dividing the volume in half, the...

) within the interior air space provide simultaneous treatment of the entire interior air space volume, but are not able to remove particles including allergens. Air purifiers and air sanitizers are therefore complementary air treatment solutions. An air sanitizer is not an air freshener

Air freshener

Air fresheners are consumer products used in homes or commercial products used in restrooms that typically emit fragrance. There are two broad air freshener categories: continuous action and instant action...

 which add fragrance to the air and do not claim to act on microbiological organisms.

The vapors of some glycols including Triethylene glycol

Triethylene glycol

Triethylene glycol, TEG, or triglycol is a colorless odorless viscous liquid with molecular formula HOCH2CH2OCH2CH2OCH2CH2OH. It is used as a plasticizer for vinyl. It is also used in air sanitizer products, such as "Oust" or "Clean and Pure." When aerosolized it acts as a disinfectant...

 can act as an air sanitizer. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency

United States Environmental Protection Agency

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...

, "There is considerable evidence that glycol vapors produce significant decreases in numbers of viable airborne bacteria under relatively wide conditions of relative humidity

Relative humidity

Relative humidity is a term used to describe the amount of water vapor in a mixture of air and water vapor. It is defined as the partial pressure of water vapor in the air-water mixture, given as a percentage of the saturated vapor pressure under those conditions...

 and temperature

Temperature

Temperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...

when properly and continuously dispensed by a vaporizing device so as to maintain suitable concentrations in the air in enclosed spaces."