UV-C: The importance of pairing lamps and power supplies
What is UV-C?
In the aftermath of the pandemic and a renewed focus on hygiene, there’s been an intensified need for healthy, clean environments. One of the most common solutions is ultraviolet light, particularly UV-C—a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum from 100-280 nanometers, according to the ISO standard—which has been proven effective as a germicidal agent and is commonly used in lamps to sterilize and disinfect air, water, surfaces, and foodstuffs.
UV-C radiation, especially UV light in the zone between 250-265 nm, inactivates various tested pathogens such as common viruses and bacteria by damaging the molecules of nucleic acids and proteins, which helps to destroy and/or render them harmless. It has been shown to be a potent technology against coronaviruses, E. coli, salmonella, and listeria, among other organisms.
Indeed, studies have shown that UV-C light can inactivate many virus particles including SARS-CoV-2 microorganisms, the strain that causes COVID-19. Depending upon whether the virus is present in air or liquid or on surfaces, the process can take anywhere from 30 seconds to 25 minutes.
Addressing reliability issues
But using UV-C isn’t simply a matter of inserting a UV-C lamp into a fixture. There are several notable issues that may affect UV-C equipment and its effectiveness:
- No national standard. There is no national standard for UV-C lamps, so products and their outputs vary widely.
- Indefinite terms. “Output” is a flexible term, as UV-C, which is part of the nonvisible part of the spectrum, doesn’t register in lumens.
- Uncertain pairings between ballasts and lamps. UV-C lamp output intensity (and therefore effectiveness) depends on the ballast driving it. Without a proper understanding of how a ballast is driving a lamp, there is a lot of room for uncertainty that can lead to insufficient disinfection performance, lamp failure, and/or solutions that are more expensive and larger than they need to be. If ballasts are not optimized to work with lamps, pairing power supplies with lamps can lead to wildly differing outcomes in power output.
Keystone offers ultraviolet germicidal lamps and paired ballasts that offer cutting-edge UV-C disinfection and sterilization to protect against viruses and bacteria. Our PureFit brand of UV-C lighting is a multifaceted solution to issues affecting UV-C lighting:
- No guesswork. Keystone has matched ballast to lamp by creating a chart of optimal replacement recommendations. These pairings provide a guaranteed performance level, so you know the exact rate of disinfection with your lamp and power supply.
- UV-C 254 nm. As noted above, 250-265 nm is the sweet spot for sanitization. Keystone lamps put out UV-C within this wavelength for optimal effectiveness.
- A full selection. We maintain a full portfolio of lamps and coordinating ballasts optimized for UV-C disinfection and sterilization, making your selection easy for any application. Whether you’re using UV-C in hospitals, schools, or water treatment, or looking to replace lamps and power supplies in existing systems, we have solutions to meet your needs.