Many kinds of the air pollutant exists around our living environment and we are unaware we have breath in quite a lot of it. Actually, houseplant is more than a decoration at home, it is actually the best natural air purifier in our house. Some more, it is less expensive and could help us create a greenery relaxing corner at home in the mean times. Let us go through the common types of harmful air pollutant exists in the air and its' bad influences to our health first, before we understand which types of houseplant could be our best air purifier.

  
Benzene

Source of benzene in the outdoor air may come from tobacco smoke, gas stations, motor vehicle exhaust, and industrial emissions. Content levels of benzene may higher than those in outdoor air because in indoor, it comes from products that contain benzene such as glues, paints, furniture wax, detergents and cosmetic products. Long term exposure to benzene in the air may cause a decrease in red blood cells, leading to anemia, irregular menstrual periods.

Formaldehyde

Formaldehyde in the air may come from industries manufacturing formaldehyde, wood products, woods furniture, automobile exhaust, cigarette smoke, paints, varnishes, carpets, cosmetics products and permanent-press fabrics. Exposure to formaldehyde may cause nasal and eye irritation, neurological effects, and increased risk of asthma. Long term exposure may lead to cancer in human.

Toulene

Toulene in the air may come from industrial emissions, car exhausts, and cigarette smoke. Indoor source of toluene may come from solvent in paints, coatings, synthetic fragrances, adhesives, inks, and cleaning agents. Toulene accumulate in the working place are mainly come from printing. Exposure of elevated airborne level of toluene may cause fatigue, sleepiness, headaches and nausea.

Trichlorethylene

Trichloroethylene in the indoor source may come from wood finishes, glues and adhesives, paint or paint removers, spot cleaners, varnishes, lubricants, correction fluid and metal cleaners. Short-term) and long-term exposure to trichloroethylene can affect the human central nervous system with symptoms such as dizziness, headaches, confusion, euphoria, facial numbness, and weakness. 

Xylene

Xylene may come from motor vehicle emission, evaporation from petroleum fuels, thinners and other products using xylene as based solvent. Exposure to xylene may cause mildly irritating to the skin, eyes, and lungs.

Acetone

Acetone may come from barbeques, solid fuels burning, tobacco smoke and aerosols used in home. Inhale moderate to high amounts of acetone may cause uncomfortable of nose, throat, lungs and eyes. It can also cause headaches, dizziness, confusion, a faster pulse, nausea, vomiting and a shorter menstrual cycle in women.

Carbon monoxide (CO)

Carbon monoxide is produced in the incomplete combustion of carbon-containing fuels, such as gasoline, natural gas, oil, coal, and wood. 

The different types of houseplants could be use to eliminate different types of air pollutant, we may make use of different combination of the houseplant to maximize the efficiency of houseplants in purifying the air pollutant in the house.

Spathiphyllum and Bamboo Palm/Lady Palm (Rhapis excelsa)

Spathiphyllum and Rhapis excelsa each of the plant may filtering 6 types of the air pollutants. Spathiphyllum may filtering acetone, ammonia, benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene and xylene. And the bamboo palm may filtering for ammonia, benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, toulene and xylene. The combination of these houseplant is recommended to be placed in every home to purify the 7 types of air pollutants. 

Hedera Helix (English Ivy)/Sansevieria (Snake Plant)/Dracaena/Epipremnum aureum Golden Pothos

Hedera helix, Sansevieria and Dracaena each of them may filtering 5 types of the common air pollutants. There are benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, xylene and toluene. And Epipremnum aureum may filter 5 types of air pollutants also, it is benzene, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, toluene and xylene. The combination of the mentioned houseplants may eliminates total 6 types of air pollutant in the air.

Anthurium/Aglaonema/Chlorophytum comosum

Some of the houseplant can filtering 3 to 4 types of common air pollutant only.  For example Anthurium may filtering ammonia, formaldehyde, toluene and xylene in the air,  Aglaonema may filtering  benzene, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde and trichloroethylene, Chlorophytum may filtering benzene, carbon monoxide, xylene and formaldehyde. Although each of the plants may filtering 4 types of air pollutants only, using the combination three of the houseplants may maximize the ability of houseplant in filtering up to 7 types of air pollutants also. 

Ficus Elastica (Rubber Plant)/ZZ Plant/Syngonium/Boston Fern (Nephrolepis exaltata)/ Kimberly Queen Fern (Nephrolepis obliterate)/Philodendron 

Some of the houseplant may not recorded as efficiency as the other houseplant in filtering air pollutant.  For example, Ficus elastica may filtering benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene and xylene. ZZ plant may filtering benzene, formaldehyde, and  toluene and xylene. Syngonium may filtering benzene, toluene and xylene. Boston fern and Kimberly Queen Fern may filtering formaldehyde, toluene and xylene Philodendron may filtering formaldehyde only. However, due to its aesthetic value as home decoration, it may combine with the other varieties of houseplant mentioned above like Sansevieria, Chlorophytum, Pothos, Spathiphyllum etc. to maximize the effect in air pollutants filtering.

Increase the number of houseplant available in the house could increase the efficiency of houseplants in purify the air. Therefore, the more of air purifying houseplant you place at home, the higher the efficiency in air purifying. In order to create a more environment sustainability lifestyles, starts placing houseplants in your house now.