Vitamin-C air filter for health

The Japanese carmaker has a new idea to make motoring healthier, introducing a vitamin C-infused filter in the airconditioning systems of its cars.  The device will be available within months in Japan and could roll out to other countries if there is a demand.

Nissan’s climate systems engineering chief, Yuzuru Yoshinami, says the device is part of Nissan’s “well being” initiative across its vehicles.  As well as filtering air in a car's cabin, the, vitam vitamin C system also has a range of health benefits for its occupants.

Some have the potential to slow signs of aging.  “People are spending more time in their cars and customers are also telling us that the conventional air conditioning systems are drying their skin out,” Yoshinami says.

He says the vitamin C is infused into the car’s interior as it is driven, with a ceramic filter costing a couple of hundred dollars. It is small enough to be easily fitted inside a conventional aircon system.

The system has already passed university tests in Japan on mice. “We detected an increase in vitamin C on the skin,” Yoshinami says.  He is confident the C system will be popular with people who spend a lot of time in their cars, particularly in grid-locked Japanese cities.

“Vitamin C is essential for the synthesis of collagen and elastin, which are necessary for a healthy skin, he says.  The system is into final trials ahead of full-scale production.  "It is small enough in size to be infused into the air in the cabin. Like other filters, it would need to be replaced once a year."