Ultraviolet Light: A Promising Tool for Preventing Future Disease Outbreaks

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly heightened people's awareness of minimizing indoor infection risks through measures like mask-wearing, room ventilation, and social distancing. However, a novel approach utilizing ultraviolet (UV) light to eliminate microbes could offer a swift and effective means to reduce virus particles in public spaces, potentially thwarting future disease outbreaks.

Trials involving far-UVC ceiling lights have demonstrated their capacity to reduce airborne microbe levels in a large room-sized chamber by more than 98 percent. In these experiments, researchers initially introduced aerosolized bacteria into the chamber and then activated the far-UVC lights, effectively purging the chamber of microbes within just five minutes.

The study's focus on Staphylococcus aureus, a bacterium less sensitive to far-UVC than coronaviruses, suggests that this approach could be applied to combat the SARS-CoV-2 virus responsible for COVID-19. Moreover, researchers assert that the far-UVC ceiling light configuration should prove equally effective against influenza and other airborne infections.

Far-UVC light distinguishes itself from the conventional UVC light used by medical professionals for germicidal purposes. While it retains UVC's virus-destroying capabilities, far-UVC operates at a shorter wavelength, specifically 222 nanometers. This characteristic renders it incapable of harming skin or eye cells, an issue encountered when people are exposed to excessive UVC light. In conjunction with enhanced ventilation and air filtration, the utilization of far-UVC light could nearly eliminate the risk of typical airborne viral transmission.

A significant advantage of employing light technologies such as far-UVC in this manner is that viruses are highly unlikely to develop resistant genes. Ultraviolet light effectively neutralizes viruses and bacteria before they can evolve resistant traits.

David Brenner, co-author of the far-UVC study at Columbia University, highlights the appeal of this technology for preventing indoor disease transmission: "What's particularly attractive about far-UVC technology as a practical method of preventing indoor disease transmission is that it will be equally good at inactivating all future COVID variants. As well as new infectious viruses that have yet to emerge, while retaining efficacy against 'old-fashioned' viruses like influenza and measles."

Current guidance from the White House and government agencies appropriately emphasizes the importance of ventilation systems, opening windows, and air filters as protective measures against airborne diseases like COVID. However, the study's use of commercially available krypton chloride excimer far-UVC lamps yielded results surpassing what can be achieved through ventilation alone.

Simultaneously, another study conducted at the University of Leeds in the UK is exploring the utilization of high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtering machines and conventional UVC germicidal lights in schoolrooms. To prevent harmful UVC exposure, these lights will be enclosed within sealed units that intake classroom air and subject it to ultraviolet light for virus eradication. The purified air can then be recirculated, free from infectious particles.

By incorporating UV light technologies alongside ventilation systems, there is significant potential for reducing viral exposure in densely populated workplaces, schools, and sports facilities—environments prone to high transmission risks. This approach has the potential to enhance the safety of public spaces, alleviating concerns about illness and reducing disease transmission.