21 May 2001: In an age when many people suffer from allergies, Volvo provides its customers with a good in-car environment. This involves both choosing the right materials and purifying the air that enters the car via the climate unit.
The textiles inside the car meet the requirements of Öko-Tex Standard 100, the world’s leading eco-labelling standard. All interior textiles are free of hazardous substances and residual products. This is particularly important for children and people who are hypersensitive.
Öko-Tex certification covers fabrics, thread, padding, mats and belts, etc. In order to meet Öko-Tex labelling requirements, no hazardous substances may be used in manufacture and handling. Nor may the textiles emit any hazardous substances during use.
The leather upholstery is tanned in a process that uses only natural vegetable substances, which is also in line with the requirements of Öko-Tex Standard 100.
Effective filters mean that the air inside the car is cleaner than it is outside. An effective particle filter that catches pollen and dirt particles on their way into the car is a standard feature.
The customer can also equip the car with a ventilation system that has further functions aimed at improving the in-car air quality. In addition to the particle filter, there is a filter with active carbon and a gas sensor that registers the incoming air.
This multi-filter sharply reduces levels of gases such as nitrogen oxides, ground-level ozone and hydrocarbons – as well as protecting occupants from the smell of petrol and diesel exhaust fumes, wiper fluid and oil.
The ventilation system monitors the levels of toxic carbon monoxide in the incoming air and closes the air intake before the levels inside the car become unhealthy – when driving behind trucks, for example, or in traffic jams and tunnels.
Ground-level ozone is a hazardous gas that causes respiratory problems and extensive damage to the natural environment. Volvo Cars was the first in the automotive industry to introduce the PremAir® ‘ozone eater’ – a coating on the radiator that converts the ozone to oxygen as the air flows through the radiator.
PremAir® is most effective in conditions where ozone formation is greatest – i.e. hot days with strong sunlight and high levels of exhaust fumes. In such conditions, it converts up to 75% of the ozone into oxygen. The technology has been developed by the American company Engelhard in collaboration with Volvo Cars.
