Why UVC LED sanitisation
What is UV LED?
The Visible LED market has made giant leaps over the last few years with expanding its applications into True BLUE, as well as the automotive industry. With the UV LED power increasing all the time this enables the technology to be used in a wider range of applications.
Discovery of UV
The discovery of UV radiation was associated with the observation that silver salts darkened when exposed to sunlight. In 1801, the German physicist, Johann Wilhelm Ritter, made the hallmark observation that invisible rays just beyond the violet end of the visible spectrum darkened silver chloride-soaked paper more quickly than visible violet light itself.
Origin of the term “UV”
The name means “beyond violet” (from Latin ultra, “beyond”), violet being the colour of the shortest wavelengths of visible light. UV lights have shorter wavelengths than visible violet light.
Why choose inui LED UVC?
Reliable LED UVC output over lifetime
UVC mercury lamps contain Mercury and are encased in glass. The UVC Stability output over the useful life of the lamp drops to ineffective levels over a very short period of time, in some cases around just 2000hours of use.
Zero mercury content for an even better environment
INUI UVC LED Lamps have zero Mercury content unlike other suppliers such as the likes of who still Mercury albeit in a capsule, but it is still Mercury no matter how you dress it up.
Dedicated recyclable production lines to ensure the quality as well as no wastage
During the production process we have an automated line that sorts and tests the precision accuracy of the wavelength of the UVC LED Chip to keep the tolerances and kept within the required 275nm. Unlike some of our competitors who cary out testing on their Mercury UVC lamps and if they fall below their standards they are rejected and this means more impact on the environment. With the INUI UVC LED Lights this end of line testing means that if we find it does not fulfil the required level, we can simply process the light again with a very simply and cost effective solution. We simply do not have any wastage or impact on the environment.
Classification of UV
The electromagnetic spectrum of ultraviolet light can be subdivided in a number of ways. The draft ISO standard on determining solar irradiance (ISO-DIS-21348) describes the UVA (400~315nm), NUV (400~300nm), UVB (315~280nm), MUV (300~200nm), UVC (280~100nm).
| Name | Wavelength (nm) | Typical Application | ||
| Near UV | UV-A | 315-400 |
UV Curing of polymers and Printer Inks, Blood Gas measurements, Nitrogen urea measurements, Bug
zapper, Lighting, Optical Sensing and imaging of dyes, inks and markers etc. |
|
| UV-B | 280-315 |
UV Curing, Phototherapy, Optical Sensing and imaging of
dyes, inks and markers. Forensic Analysis, Protein analysis, DNA sequencing, Drug discovery etc. |
||
| Deep UV | UV-C | 100-280 |
Deep Sanitisation, Disinfection, Ozone Monitoring, Decontamination of surface and water Forensic Analysis, Protein analysis, DNA sequencing, Drug discovery, Optical sensing and Imaging of dyes, inks and markers etc. |
|
The benefits of UV LED
The benefits of uv led are many, compared with mercury contained lamps.
LED’s pull significantly less energy and, in most cases, can be plugged into a standard wall socket point. In addition, an LED is instantly on/off; there is no need to keep the lamps running when not in use. Mercury lamps emit ozone that needs to be removed. The ozone emitted from the Mercury UV Lamps can lead to respiratory problems for those who work near the units, so it’s important to make sure the UV lamp units are well vented to evacuate ozone from the work area. The cost of displacing this large amount of air, by use of extractors or fans, contributes to higher energy consumption and higher overhead cost. LED does not emit ozone and is cooler running meaning there is no need for venting or heat extraction which in turn keeps costs down.
Mercury UV Lamps have a usable life of about 2,000 hours. LED UV has a life in excess of ten years running continuously, with instant on/off and 8 hours of use per day. Small form factor of UV LED is also a strong point. UV LED is much smaller in size than conventional UV lamps, so it gives more flexibilities for designing the UV product applications. Mercury UV lamps are made from glass which makes them susceptible to easy breakage.
Compare uv led with conventional UV lamp
The UV LED does not use mercury and thus is environmentally friendly and has advantages of long lifespan, saving of energy and low heat loss etc.
| UV LED | Comparison | Conventional UV Lamp |
| New, Light, Simple, Compact | Technology | Old, Bulky, Heavy, Complex |
| 10,000-50,000 Hours | Life Time | 2,000-10,000 Hours |
| Low | Energy Consumption | High |
| Instant | Warm-up time | Slow |
| No mercury, No Ozone | Environmental Friendliness | Mercury used, Ozone generation |
| Low | Heat generation | High |
| Single UV Band, Customisable | Emission Wavelength | Multiple Peaks through age |
| None | Heavy Metals |
Mercury (20 – 200 mg) |
Compare UV LED with Conventional UV Lamp
UV LED market trend
Most of the UV LEDs sold were UVA/B(365-400nm) wavelength range of products, and more than 90% of the products were light handheld, forgery testing machines, medical field and equipment appurtenant products. But, starting from this year, the water/air sterilisation/purification system using UV LED of UVC (100-280nm) wavelength range will be commercialised. Also, visible ray LED corporations from Korea, Japan, Taiwan and China will enter the UV LED device market and thus the competition will be fierce. Companies are working round the clock to bring the UVC products to the market now brought on by the Covid-19 crises around the world. The market needs to vigilante to poor quality UVC products that are suddenly being made quickly available. Most of these will not be true UVC 275nm wavelength and will simply be using the visible UVA/B that gives off that all to familiar Ultra-Violet deep colour. The main this to remember is that true UVC is almost an invisible light to the human eye.
Application market for each UV LED wavelength.
The LED of UV scope is seeing high efficiency and high output and the industrial use is being proliferated. The UV LED has different applications according to the luminous wavelength and the UV A scope (315-400mm) is mainly used for light handheld devices, forgery testing machines etc. The UV B scope (280-315mm) is used in medical equipment, analysing machine and vitamin synthesis. For medical/bio fields the UV C scope (280-200mm) is used mainly for the sterilisation/purification/filtration of water and sanitisation of exposed surfaces etc.
However, although there are many applications and potential markets, the current UV LED light source have had restrictions in entering the market due to the difficulties in high quality thin film growth due to the use of AIN family material and the low light output of the UV LED element due to the non-development of element production process technology and absence of the UV LED package element. With the market now increasing at an accelerated rate, the development in the UVC technological will overcome these problems in a very short time.
Applications of the UV
Sterilisation
255~280㎚: Disinfection / Water purifier / Air purifier
265~385㎚: Deodorisation