13/11/2020
Here's what you need to know about UVC radiation - one of the oldest players in sanitization :
The UV rays or Ultraviolet rays are a certain spectrum of electromagnetic radiation ranging between 100 nm to 400 nm.
The UVC spectrum, especially the bandwidth of 250 to 270 nm is heavily absorbed by the nucleic acids present in microorganisms. And that is why it is the most fatal range of wavelengths for the microbes, which is also why it is known as the germicidal spectrum.
UVC is everywhere!
No, we are not talking about the UV radiation from the sun that hits the earth. The natural UVC spectrum never makes it to our planet as its wavelengths are completely absorbed by the ozone layer in our atmosphere. We are talking about the wavelengths of UVC that are available via artificial sources like mercury lamps, UVC LEDs, welding torches, and the like.
Believe it or not, UVC is one of the oldest players in sanitization
For the last 100 years, UVC radiation has been known to be highly germicidal. Hospitals and laboratories have been using UVC radiation for killing microbes, disinfecting the hospital space as well as sanitization.
Researchers have found UVC can avoid the spread of diseases in crowded spaces like schools and restaurants
A group led by David Brenner, Physicist at Columbia University Medical Center in New York tested aerosolized influenza viruses with shorter wavelengths of UVC, 222 nm to be precise, and found out that the UVC treated viruses couldn't manage to infect living cells. "If the studies pan out, it could be beneficial in disrupting disease transmission", opines Shawn Gibbs, Industrial Hygienist at the Indiana University School of Public Health in Bloomington.
Ultraviolet simply means 'beyond light'. And in a pandemic hit world where sanitization is the need of the hour, UVC can certainly prove to be a bright idea!