from Max's link:

"The ions work to make water molecules smaller, so it is easier to get them to evaporate and leave hair dry."

/--/

Is that a different spiel than the one the Sharper Image was touting some years ago?

Ionic Breeze Suit Drives Sharper Image into Bankruptcy
"Company challenged Consumer Reports and lost"

 

Is that a different spiel than the one the Sharper Image was touting some years ago?

Ionic Breeze Suit Drives Sharper Image into Bankruptcy
"Company challenged Consumer Reports and lost"

"My asthma had been getting progressively worse for years, and now, after only 2 days of this thing being off, I have noticed a dramatic reduction is my symptoms," she said. "I do not know yet if the damage to my lungs is permanent, but for the first time in at least a year, I can take a deep breath without coughing and I don't wake up every two hours needing to use an inhaler."

... talk about a damning statement!

 

Oh well, at least the quacks aren't messing with anything important.

I just hope they weren't wasting "oxygen free copper wire" when they wound the motor in that thing!

 

The frantic and constant search for "product differentiation" things leads to all kinds of worthless stuff being crammed into products. That has been going on for a whole lot of years, and shows no sign of slowing. Indeed, the whole "5G" system push for smart phones and other useless toys is based on features that the marketing people believe will sell. Never caring that a product that was 100% reliable and lasted a long time would also sell. An ion generator in the hair dryer? Probably it connects in series with the brush type motor and uses the brush noise as the high frequency excitation. So hair would dry just as well without it.

 

There you go, I cracked that thing open, and it seems to be an inductor or transformer of some type.

​

The ferrite is clearly visible in the core, and I measured the magnet wire within it. It has exactly a 0.002" o.d. Which corresponds to a gauge of of #44 or #45 single build enameled wire. I have no idea of how the three wires were connected in it, nor why.

 

Looks like a high voltage generator to me.

Here's how deionizers work: They generate a surplus of positive and negative charged ions. Since opposites attract they will neutralize each other. This is useful in the field of ESD control. Deionizers blow a field of ionized air molecules over a work surface. The theory is that anything that is charged, positively or negatively will attract the opposite charge and dissipate their static charges. Many items can hold electrical charges, though they're not conductors. Conductors are easy to discharge. It's the plastics and papers that can hold a charge. Human bodies can likewise hold a charge. 50,000 volts of electro static is common in dry arid conditions. Winter time is especially interesting when you get out of your car, turn to close the door and SNAP! You get that high voltage discharge that makes your muscle contract suddenly and uncontrollably. Typically women (and I'm not picking on gender) will sit in the car while fueling their cars just to stay warm. When they get out - if they don't touch the body of the car they can carry a high voltage charge with them to the nozzle. If the nozzle is not properly grounded - I said "PROPERLY" - they can induce a spark in an area that is rich in fuel vapors, and they can have a spontaneous gas fed fire at the pump. It happens to women more often than men, largely because women tend to wear nylon more frequently than men. Nylon is one of those fabrics that is good at generating static voltages.

Whether positively or negatively charged, a spark can ensue. In hair dryers, blowing hot dry air on your head not only heats the hair it also bombards it with microscopic dust particles that can also generate static electric charges. When hair becomes statically charged it can stand on end. That's because like charged particles repel each other. Thus, you get that frizzy look. Implementing a deionizer in a hair dryer SHOULD reduce the amount of static charge retained in the hair. You SHOULD get better results. As to the claims about water molecules being smaller and more easily absorbed? I think that's getting into the science of water surface tension, and I'd tend to not believe the part about making water smaller. As it dries, it gets smaller, regardless of the method for drying. Just blowing hot air on your scalp - that may evaporate water, but so will cool dry air. I live in Utah where many people use swamp coolers to cool their house (swamp cooler is an evaporative cooler) and they work quite well. But not so in humid regions.

Nevertheless, I'd keep that high voltage generator just in case I came up with a project for it. Perhaps you have a pest that is invading your garden and want to vigorously encourage it to take up residence elsewhere. Or maybe set it up at a party. Hot wire the toilet seat. IDK! Lots of fun things you can do with high voltage. Just don't kill yourself or anyone else. The rest should be fun. Maybe turn it into an electric fence. You could make a fish tickler for those fishing trips.

 

Hello,

The part is likely an ion generator.
It is likely used to make the hair less static, so it can be combed easier.

Reminds me of an old joke:
For sale : ceramic hair straitener.
But I don't have ceramic hair.

Bertus

 

That was weird. Thought I'd read all the posts before I commented. Looks like I was a day late. Not to mention dollars. Too late for keeping it for another project. But now that I know they're becoming more common I think I'm going to keep an eye out for such dryers for scrap. I LOVE playing with high voltage.

 

There you go, I cracked that thing open, and it seems to be an inductor or transformer of some type.

.

He's dead Jim!
Max.