Posted on 03/23/2022 1:25:22 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
A new type of ultraviolet light that is safe for people took less than five minutes to reduce the level of indoor airborne microbes by more than 98%, a joint study has found. Even as microbes continued to be sprayed into the room, the level remained very low as long as the lights were on.
The study suggests that far-UVC light from lamps installed in the ceiling could be a highly effective passive technology for reducing person-to-person transmission of airborne-mediated diseases such as COVID and influenza indoors, and lowering the risk of the next pandemic.
"Far-UVC rapidly reduces the amount of active microbes in the indoor air to almost zero, making indoor air essentially as safe as outdoor air," says David Brenner, Ph.D.
"Far-UVC light is simple to install, it's inexpensive, it doesn't need people to change their behavior, and above all it's a safe way to prevent the transmission of any virus, including the COVID virus and its variants, as well as influenza and also any potential future pandemic viruses," Brenner says.
During the experiment, a sprayer continuously emitted an aerosol mist of S. aureus bacteria into the room. (This microbe was chosen because it is slightly less sensitive to far-UVC light than coronaviruses, providing the researchers with an appropriately conservative model.) When the concentration of microbes in the room stabilized, the researchers turned on commercially available overhead far-UVC lamps.
At an intensity based on the current regulatory limit on far-UVC light exposure, the far-UVC lamps inactivated more than 98% of the airborne microbes in just five minutes. The low level of viable microbes was maintained over time, even though microbes continued to be sprayed into the room.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
Not to be overly pedantic, but I don’t think the type of light is new - perhaps the lamp, but not the light itself.
Ping
I was thinking the same thing.
Regardless, it sounds like a winner.
Remember a year ago when they told us that UV doesn’t really disinfect (bc they wanted people getting vaxxed instead of relying on other methods), despite that making absolutely no scientific sense?
Far UV IS where the radiation starts causing cellular damage in biological tissue.
“harmless to eyes & skin”
Uh huh. You go ahead and be the guinea pig then, I’ll wait and see just in case your DNA melts and you become sterile.
Masks don't work, 15 days needed to slow the spread, Kids need not worry, we don't need to lock things down, Hunter's laptop is a Russian hoax...
S. aureus bacteria is a gram positive bacteria and not a virus.
It can be a very deadly bacteria for post op patients and other patients in a hospital setting.
What about opening windows when weather is nice?
Simple no cost alternative is opening a window.
Came here to say that.
My (parochial) grade school had these lights back in the 1950s.
Sounds like a good idea for public restrooms that have those hi pressure low volume flush units. All that gets aerosolized and then inhaled or clings to the front of the mask you’ve been wearing and hen gets breathed in for the rest of the day.
Just sayin...
A virus is a small collection of genetic code, either DNA or RNA, surrounded by a protein coat.
A bacterium is a single-celled microorganisms lacking a true nucleus and organelles such as mitochondria, chloroplasts, and lysosomes. Its genetic material consists of a single loop of double-stranded DNA.
UVC can be very dangerous. Avoid direct exposure to it.
But they’re not cheap.😳
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