Do you want to know whether the UV light purifies air or not? Read below to find out.
Initially, ultraviolet or UV light was used to disinfect water, air, and surfaces. Many people have wondered if this technology would work for airborne microbes or improve air quality. Here, we will discuss how UV air purifiers operate, if they are useful in clearing air pollutants or not, and last but not least, if UV lights can decrease the chances of coronavirus or not. Everybody thinks about HEPA filters when they hear something about air purification. It's nothing surprising because HEPA is the foundation of air purifiers.
There are more technologies which can clean air for different purposes. When this light is used correctly, it will destroy all mold, mildew, germs, or even viruses and bacteria. Let's find out how this light performs all those tasks.
UV Light’s Definition
UV light, also known as UV-C, is 1 of the 3 types of ultraviolet light, and this light is commonly used for air purification. We know that the ultraviolet rays are hazardous for swimmers, beach enjoyers, and sunlight bathers in the summertime. This UV light is similar to X-rays and radio waves; it is invisible electromagnetic radiation.
This UV light causes sunburns, which destroy cells, but its cell-destroying capabilities can kill or destroy air impurities. Mold and mildew stand no chance against UV light. The wavelength of UV is smaller than any visible light. Also, UV light makes up about 10% of the sun's output. With technology, we can create UV light artificially using tanning beds, arc welders, black lights, and other air purifiers.
UV Light Air Treatment is essential to purify your home’s indoor air.
How Does UV Light Cleanse the Air?
As we just said, the UV light can destroy any cells; it also harms the bad cells that are wandering around the house. UV destroys a cell’s nucleic acids, disrupting that cell’s DNA; eventually, that cell dies. When the cells are exposed to the sun for a long time, they cannot do their vital functions. Usually, the UV light air purifiers in your home are a mixer of a forced-air system and a filter. It makes the UV light air purifier a processor to clean the air. The UV lamp is placed in a portable air purifier downstream of a filter. Keep in mind that the humidity, UV lamp variation, and temperature can affect its performance.
The UV-C germicidal purifiers are known to have the silent UV-C lamp. They do not have any odor whatsoever, even when they are operating. The UV light bulbs will need replacements each year, which entirely depends on the type of that bulb.
How Do UV Light Air Purifiers Use UV-C Light?
The principal beneficial feature of UV-C air purifiers is UV-C illumination. Light will replace the particles that consume it when those additional energies are more than noticeable, and DNA is highly prone to these modifications. Ultraviolet light overwhelms microbes and annihilates DNA all around the light.
Since enjoying a day on the beach, if people get sunburned, they suffer from radiation sickness from a form of UV light released by the sun. Pigmentation is the tissue's inflammatory reaction when UV radiation damages the DNA, escalating towards leukemia (skin cancer). Bacteria is a single-cell compound. They rely on the survival of DNA, which is why UV light air filters are used. When the DNA of a bacterial cell is completely killed, it causes a process of self-destruction, making it harmless. It is possible to set up UV-C air purifiers in various ways, even with different degrees of intensity.
How Do UV Air Purifiers Operate?
UV-C light air purifiers are working on making life less stressful. They are designed to be used as Uv light. They can theoretically modify and neutralize or kill the DNA of microbes. This emission can appear purplish-blue or become visible, based on the elements of the emitter. As per the EPA, the housing units utilize mercury lights that emit UV-C light with a wavelength of 254 nm.
Ultraviolet purifiers are essentially a mixture of a forced-air process and HEPA filter. For this function, the Ultraviolet light of the air purifiers works per other methods for cleaning the air. The atmospheric in-house air is pushed into the device and insulated through a chamber of emitted photon lights inside the UV-C range. In a compact air purifier, the UV light is often mounted downwards via a filter. Various elements, such as ultraviolet light, pressure, humidity, and temperature, can influence the light source's output.
UV-C lights used in UV-C germicidal humidifiers are still. The brightness in many, relying on the casing placed all over them, is invisible to the naked eye since they are often odorless. Based on the conditions and design, UV lamps can need replacement annually.
Dangerous Side of UV Air Purifiers
It is possibly the crucial drawback of UV air purifiers; it has been demonstrated that UV-C radiation turns oxygen from the air into ozone. This occurs as light allows oxygen to split up into two different atoms by photocatalysis and to work with other oxygen atoms to generate ozone. For UV-C bulbs, it can occur, usually when they're uncoated. Some manufactures use a protective layer on the Ultraviolet light for this.
The Last Words
There has been little progress in the air purifier industry till now. A new technology named Molekule PECO (Photoelectrochemical oxidation) technology gives a powerful alternative solution over UV air purifiers.
Airborne microbes can be killed by PECO technology; it also kills VOCs and allergens, which can not be found by UV air purifiers.
A study has shown that PECO can kill 99.99% of microorganisms. The UV air purifiers cannot even dream of getting to that level of purification unless the UV air purifier is a HEPA air purifier. Always go for that air purifier that looks and works the best for you, and it must ensure to keep your family safe from any viruses or bacteria.
