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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 177 / Thursday, September 16, 2021 / Proposed Rules 6293a1B Furthermore, once a product is determined to be a covered product, the Secretary may set standards for such product, subject to the provisions in 42 U.S.C. 6295o and p, provided that DOE determines that four additional criteria at 42 U.S.C. 6295l have been met. Specifically, 42 U.S.C.
6295l requires the Secretary to determine that:
1 The average household energy use of the products has exceeded 150 kWh per household for a 12-month period;
2 The aggregate 12-month energy use of the products has exceeded 4200
gigawatt-hours;
3 Substantial improvement in energy efficiency of products of such type is technologically feasible; and 4 Application of a labeling rule under 42 U.S.C. 6294 is unlikely to be sufficient to induce manufacturers to produce, and consumers and other persons to purchase, covered products of such type or class that achieve the maximum energy efficiency that is technologically feasible and economically justified. 42 U.S.C.
6295l1
II. Current Rulemaking Process DOE has not previously conducted a rulemaking for air cleaners. If, after public comment, DOE issues a final determination of coverage for this product, DOE may prescribe both test procedures and energy conservation standards for this product. DOE will publish a final decision on coverage as a separate notice, an action that will be completed prior to the initiation of any test procedure or energy conservation standards rulemaking. 10 CFR part 430
subpart C appendix A section 5c. If DOE determines that coverage is warranted, DOE will proceed with its typical rulemaking process for both test procedures and standards. Id. DOE is not proposing test procedures or energy conservation standards as part of this proposed determination. If DOE
proceeds with a rulemaking to establish energy conservation standards, DOE
would determine if air cleaners satisfy the provisions of 42 U.S.C. 6295l1
during the course of that rulemaking.
III. Scope of Coverage Air cleaners are products that remove, destroy, or deactivate particulate matter and other contaminants from the air to improve indoor air quality. A wide range of consumer air cleaner products are available on the market, including tabletop units, units sized for single rooms or multiple rooms, and wholehome units integrated into a central heating and cooling system. Air cleaners employ a wide variety of technologies to
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remove particulate matter and other contaminants from the air, and may also provide air circulation or humidification, and other forms of indoor air quality improvement.
To help inform its proposed scope of coverage, DOE utilized existing classifications of air cleaners developed by the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers AHAMthe industry trade group for air cleanersand the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys EPAs ENERGY STAR program, as well as additional market research conducted by DOE. The following paragraphs discuss DOEs considerations from these sources and present the proposed definition that would provide the basis for coverage of air cleaners under EPCA.
AHAM publishes a standard method of test, certified by American National Standards Institute ANSI, for measuring the performance of portable household electric room air cleaners, titled ANSI/AHAM AC12020 Portable Household Electric Room Air Cleaners ANSI/AHAM AC12020.5 AHAM
describes this standard as establishing a uniform, repeatable procedure or standard method for measuring specified product characteristics of household portable air cleaners. The standard methods provide a means to compare and evaluate different brands and models of household portable air cleaners on the basis of characteristics significant to product use. Section 3.1 of ANSI/AHAM AC12020 defines Portable Household Electric Room Air Cleaner Air Cleaner as an electric appliance with the function of removing particulate matter from the air and which can be moved from room to room. Hereinafter referred to as air cleaner. In addition, Sections 3.1.1
through 3.1.6 of ANSI/AHAM AC1
2020 define the following installation configurations of air cleaners:
1 Air CleanerFloor Type: Floor type air cleaners are designed to stand alone on the floor of a room and are designated as stand-alone floor models by the manufacturer. Appliances of this type are tested on the floor facing the test window as close to the center of the test chamber as possible.
2 Air CleanerTable Type: Table type air cleaners are designed to set on a table or counter by the manufacturer.
Appliances of this type are tested on the table stand facing the test window at the center of the test chamber.
3 Air CleanerWall Type: Wall type air cleaners are designed either to attach 5 ANSI/AHAM AC12020 available at AHAM
website at www.aham.org/
itemdetail?iproductcode=30002&category=padstd.

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to a wall and are designated as wall mountable by the manufacturer or as a plug-in air cleaner. A wall type air cleaner must include appropriate wall mounting brackets or specifically designated instructions to mount the air cleaner integrally to the wall i.e., not a shelf. Appliances of this type are tested on the wall mount stand facing the test window placed at the center of the test chamber.
4 Air CleanerCombination Type:
Combination type air cleaners are designed to operate in one or more orientations/positions floor, table, wall as designed by the manufacturer. A
combination type air cleaner may be tested at the center of the test chamber facing the test window on the floor, table, or wall mount stand, according to how it has been designated by the manufacturer.
5 Air CleanerCeiling Type: Air cleaner appliances designed to be mounted on the ceiling are considered outside the scope of this method.
Uniform testing practices and statistical examination of such appliances have not been conducted.
6 Air CleanerPlug-In Type: A fixed location air cleaner directly connected to an electric receptacle outlet by means of direct plug-in no electric cord. Appliances of this type are tested at the lower level electrical receptacle of the plug-in type test stand facing the test window.
In addition, Section 3.2 of ANSI/
AHAM AC12020 defines the following specific design characteristics of portable household electric room air cleaners:
1 Fan with Filter: Air cleaners that operate with an electrical source of power and which contain a motor and fan for drawing air through a filter media.
2 Fan with Electrostatic Plates: Air cleaners that operate with a fan and incorporate electrically charged plates or wires to electrostatically collect particulate matter. Such devices may include filters.
3 Fan Filter with Ion Generator: Air cleaners that incorporate an ion generator in addition to a fan and filter.
4 Ion Generator: Air cleaners that incorporate an ion generator only.
5 Hybrid: An air cleaner employing a combination of the above definitions of fan with filter, electrostatic plate/
wire, and ion generator.
6 Other Types: A device that has the stated capability to reduce the concentration of particulate matter in a room. Such devices do not have to contain a fan and can incorporate any of the particle removal methods previously noted.

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