UV Light Disinfection, Bringing the Power of the Sun Indoors.
Many healthcare facilities use ultraviolet light systems to disinfect patient and operating rooms, Ultraviolet lamps are also used to sterilize workspaces and tools used in medical facilities and biology laboratories. Yet despite significant research and usage, Ultraviolet light systems are often misunderstood, so let’s take a deeper look.
What is Ultraviolet (UV) Light?
Ultraviolet rays are invisible to most human, in nature Ultraviolet (UV) light is electromagnetic radiation produced by the sun, and constitutes about 10% of the total electromagnetic radiation output from the Sun. Short-wave ultraviolet light damages DNA and sterilizes surfaces with which it comes into contact, suntan and sunburn are familiar effects of excessive exposure to UV light.
UV Light Disinfection
Ultraviolet rays are invisible to most human, in nature Ultraviolet (UV) light is electromagnetic radiation produced by the sun, and constitutes about 10% of the total electromagnetic radiation output from the Sun. Short-wave ultraviolet light damages DNA and sterilizes surfaces with which it comes into contact, suntan and sunburn are familiar effects of excessive exposure to UV light.
Ultraviolet light mangles the genetic material in pathogens the DNA in bacteria and fungi, preventing them from reproducing, essentially killing it. It has been used primarily in medical sanitation, water purification, and sterile work facilities, and is now being explored in other areas.
Ultraviolet light can disinfect hard to clean surfaces such as couches and rugs, or easy to miss areas, such as corners and door handles.
There is an actual UV light therapy that is being explored as a potential treatment for coronavirus and other respiratory infections. Researchers at Columbia University are testing the effectiveness of a certain type of UV light which can kill viruses without harming humans, according to Columbia University's Center for Radiological Research.
“Far-UVC light has the potential to be a ‘game changer,’” said David Brenner, professor of radiation biophysics and director of the center. “It can be safely used in occupied public spaces, and it kills pathogens in the air before we can breathe them in.”
Amazon has built a robot that is designed to kill the novel coronavirus with ultraviolet light, this robot could be used in warehouses and at Whole Foods stores to kill the virus on surfaces such as food, packaging, and door handles.
More usage of UV Light
Ultraviolet lamps are used to sterilize workspaces and tools used in biology laboratories and medical facilities, the wavelengths damage a microorganism's DNA/RNA so that it cannot reproduce, making it harmless, (even though the organism may not be killed). These lamps are to be used as a supplement to other sterilization techniques, and do not replace cleaning surfaces or handwashing.
Disinfection using UV radiation is commonly used in wastewater treatment applications and is finding an increased usage in municipal drinking water treatment. Many bottlers of spring water use UV disinfection equipment to sterilize their water. Ultraviolet radiation is used in several food processes to kill unwanted microorganisms. UV can be used to pasteurize fruit juices by flowing the juice over a high-intensity ultraviolet source
