How many types of ultraviolet rays are there?
Ultraviolet rays are of several categories:
- UV-C, from 100 nanometers (nm) to 280 nm
- UV-B, from 280 nm to 315 nm
- UV-A, from 315 nm to up to 400 nm
The only germicidal rays are UVC.
What are the benefits of using UVC lamps?
This technology is non-chemical. In this disinfection process, no substances are used or added, which make the process very simple, efficient and cheap. Ultraviolet rays purify without leaving chemical residues in the room.
Which lamp to choose?
Disinfection lamps are divided into 2 categories depending on the wavelength they produce:
1. 185nm UV-C lamps -These UVC rays change Oxygen into Ozone and can also be called Ozone-generating lamps.
Ozone has a strong oxidizing effect and can destroy bacteria, viruses, mites and other pathogens very effectively. This lamp model has the advantage that it disinfects rooms where there are many obstacles to the UVC light emitted by the lamp. For example, sterilization also occurs under a desk, behind a closet, among clothes or behind a television.
Ozone ensures the disinfection of areas where UVC rays cannot reach.
The process by which Ozone is created using 185nm UVC light
The disadvantage of lamps with this wavelength is the fact that ozone is irritating to the human and animal body, and the room where this lamp is used must be ventilated for at least 15 minutes after each use.
2. 254 nm UV-C lamps - These lamps do NOT emit ozone. They destroy microorganisms by irradiating DNA.
Scientists have established that this frequency is the most harmful, the most used and the most effective for eradicating viruses, bacteria, mold, mites and other pathogens. The way it works is by destroying the DNA of microorganisms and thus disables their ability to multiply and cause disease.
DNA structure before and after 254 nm UVC rays
The tubes that emit this frequency are specially created so that only the 254 nm rays that do not create ozone come out through them to avoid the inconvenience of airing the rooms where the lamp is used.
The disadvantages of using these lamps is that they sterilize only what is in the range of the light they produce.
Why Quartz tubes?
In general, the tubes of UVC light lamps that are made exclusively for sterilization are made of Quartz, precisely because this material has a high transmission rate of UVC rays, between 80-90% of their frequency and for this reason it is the most efficient material.
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