An UVC-based disinfection trolley to fight COVID-19 by rapid cleaning of hospital environment was unveiled by the International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials, an autonomous R&D Centre of Department of Science and Technology, and the University of Hyderabad on Wednesday with the help of Mekins Industries (MIL).
UV light in the range of wavelength between 200 and 300 nm is capable of inactivating microorganisms, such as bacteria and viruses, thereby disinfecting both air and solid surfaces. Often, chemical disinfectants are not enough to remove the bacteria and viruses found in hospitals and other contamination-prone environment, informed an official spokesperson.
While recovery rates of COVID-19 patients are impressively high in India, rapid decontamination of the used patient-care beds and hospital rooms is a major requirement in hospitals in view of limited availability of beds. Coronavirus is sensitive to UVC light as in the case of other virus and bacteria, and the germicidal effects of UVC irradiation with a peak intensity at 254 nm results in cellular damage of the virus inhibiting the cellular replication. UV light provides rapid, effective inactivation of micro-organisms through a physical process, unlike chemicals, she added, in a press release.
