The working mechanism of an ionic air cleaner is to alter the polarity of the particulate matter present inside the room. In majority of the configurations, stainless steel built-in needles are used togenerate electrons. After turning on the power supply, the needlepointscreate negative ions, which are circulated and attached to theparticulate contaminants, thus converting them into charged particles.The resulting charged particles attract towards each other or adhere topositively charged surfaces.

The overall outcome of an aircleaner ionizer is the formation of large and heavy particles, which nolonger remain floating in the air, but they tend to settle down orattached to the nearby surfaces. Frequent dusting and cleaning isrequired to clean the particles that have settled on the surfaces. It isoften used with a home air filter system that helps in collecting theionized particles. The mechanical filter should also be changedregularly, so as to prevent clogging.