Class 100 Cleanrooms
Class 100 cleanrooms are the third highest classification in Federal Standard 209 standards. To meet regulations, a Class 100 standard cleanroom must never exceed 100 particles per cubic foot (the particles being 0.5 microns or larger). As a reference point for just how small 0.5 microns is, the average human hair is approximately 75-100 microns in width.
Quick links to Class 100 Cleanrooms Information
Applications of Class 100 Cleanrooms
The airborne cleanliness classes in cleanrooms and zones name their classes after the maximum number of particles allowed in the rooms at one time. Class 100 follows classes 1 and 10, which are used in production labs for electronic integrated circuits. Class 100’s ISO standard equivalent is ISO 5. Cleanrooms are used where air is continuously filtered so tiny particles in the air don't damage highly sensitive technologies. As a result, they are used in the medical and computer manufacturing industry in laboratories for applications such as medical implants and hard drive production or repair. Additional applications and industries that utilize Class 100 cleanrooms are electronics, plastic bag fabrication, nanofabrication, food preparation, and semiconductor fabrication.
Class 100 Cleanroom Design and Customization
Due to the standards and regulations that Class 100 cleanrooms must adhere to, the types of materials from which they are manufactured are limited. As a result, the panel or wall materials in Class 100 cleanrooms are often made of materials like white acrylic, steel or stainless steel, aluminum, or polycarbonate. In addition to regulating the materials that the cleanrooms are manufactured from, the materials entering the cleanrooms are also regulated. For example, bunny suits are typically provided for people working in cleanrooms so their skin and hair particles don't enter the room.
This class of cleanrooms can be any of the three types:
- Ballrooms
- Large and open rooms that are parts of the actual building.
- Modular
- Temporary and small rooms within a room.
- Soft Wall
- The walls are made of tightly stretched or free-hanging fabric.
In addition, they may range in size from huge open spaces to tiny chambers depending on the requirements of the application. Additional features such as temperature control and electrostatic discharge control are also possible in this class of cleanrooms.