Far-UVC Light is Coronavirus Variant-Proof

An innovative ultraviolet light took less than five minutes to reduce indoor airborne microbes by more than 98%, reported scientists at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and in the U.K.

Even as microbes continued to be sprayed into the room, the level remained very low as long as the lights were on.

And people were found to be safe too!

Far-UVC light (Krypton Chloride excimer lamps) has a shorter wavelength than conventional germicidal UVC, so it can’t penetrate living human skin cells or eye cells.

But it is equally efficient at killing bacteria and viruses, which are much smaller than human cells.

At a room ventilation rate of three air changes per hour, with 5 filtered sources, the steady-state pathogen load was reduced by 98.4% providing an additional 184 equivalent air changes.

“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,” commented David Brenner, Ph.D., director of the Center for Radiological Research at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and co-author of the study, in a press statement issue don March 25, 2022.

“Using this technology in locations where people gather together indoors could prevent the next potential pandemic.”

The study published in the journal Scientific Reports on March 23, 2022, 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 and lowering the risk of the next pandemic. 

The study was supported by grants from the U.K. Health Security Agency and various industry disclosures were included.

Note: This article edited the press release and study for clarity and was manually curated for mobile readers.