TECH

French develops ultraviolet ray apparatus to combat Covid-19

Several researchers have been studying the use of ultraviolet lamps in the fight against Covid-19. Despite the uncertainties about the limits of its application of the method, a French company has developed a UV device that is already being tested in clinics and hospitals to disinfect surfaces and environments.
The technique is not new, since ultraviolet cleaning systems have been around for more than a century. But with the Covid-19 pandemic, the device, used for example to disinfect water, has been adapted to fight the coronavirus.
China has already installed ultraviolet lamps in robots to disinfect about 2,000 hospitals. In Brazil, researchers from USP also developed a kind of UV squeegee to disinfect the floor.
Since April, a French company specialized in UV water disinfection has been testing a portable device that could be used in hospitals, but also in bars, restaurants and transport.

How it works
There are three types of ultraviolet: UV-A, UV-B and UV-C. If the first two are harmful and cause skin aging, and even genetic mutations that can lead to skin cancer (in the case of UV-B), UV-C has a germinicidal function. This ultraviolet ray acts on bacteria, fungi, but also viruses. And, unlike soap or alcohol, which attack the outer layers, UV-Cs cause structural mutations in exposed organisms.
“The principle is that it goes into the heart of the cell's DNA, disrupting their metabolism”, explains in an interview with France 2 channel Benoît Gillmann, CEO of the company Bio-UV, which currently tests the devices at Farnça. He points out that some adaptations have been made, and that precautions still need to be taken. Like, for example, the protection of the eyes and skin of those who apply the method - which explains the use of robots in China.
But Benoît Gillmann is optimistic. He explains that first UV-C rays were used to disinfect all types of microorganisms, before having their effectiveness evaluated in the action against Covid-19. The results were satisfactory and the company, which claims to have already obtained all the necessary certifications from the health authorities, expects to start marketing the devices in less than a month.

by France radio international-RFI