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    Disinfection for air, surfaces and water

    Download UV lamps & gear catalog

    UV-C disinfection

    The challenge


    The quality of the air we breathe, the water we drink and the cleanness of surfaces all have a profound effect on our health and well-being. We’re all at risk of contracting or spreading viruses and bacteria.
     

    UV-C radiation is a known disinfectant for air, water and surfaces that can help mitigate the risk of acquiring an infection and has been used extensively for more than 40 years1. All bacteria and viruses tested to date (many hundreds over the years, including various coronaviruses) respond to UV-C disinfection2. There are no known pathogens resistant to UV-C. A clear indication that UV-C light can play a valuable part in your protection strategy.

    What is UV technology?


    Ultra-Violet (UV) light is invisible to the human eye and is divided into UV-A, UV-B and UV-C.
     

    UV-C is found within 100-280 nm range. In the graph can be seen that germicidal action is maximized at 265 nm with reductions on either side. Philips Low pressure UV-C lamps have their main emission at 254 nm where the action on DNA is 85% of the peak value and 80% on the IES curve. As a result, our germicidal lamps are extremely effective in breaking down the DNA of micro-organisms. This means that they cannot replicate and cause disease3.

    Micro-organisms effective resistance to UV light varies considerably. Moreover, the environment of the particular micro-organism greatly influences the radiation dose needed for its destruction.

    Download UV application information
    UV technology info-graphic
    UV technology info-graphic

    Benefits of UV-C technology

    Defeats micro-organisms icon

    Defeats micro-organisms


    Proven effective against viruses, bacteria, molds and spores.
    Protects against micro-organism growth icon

    Protects against micro-organism growth


    Keeps the surface of water reservoirs clean from biofilm. Keeps air treatment systems clean.
    Reliable disinfection icon

    Reliable disinfection


    Disinfection effect is directly related to UV dose (intensity and exposure time of micro-organisms). It's simple to measure effectiveness once system design is validated.
    Easy and cost-effective icon

    Easy and cost-effective


    UV-C installations have low capital and operation costs and are easy to operate and maintain.

    Why choose Philips UV lamps?

    Reliable UV-C output icon

    Reliable UV-C output


    All our low pressure lamps come with a unique coating to ensure UV-C output never drops below 85% over the useful life of the lamp.
    Highest lamp quality icon

    Highest lamp quality


    Cutting edge automated production lines are used for electrode processing and emitter dosing. All lamps are checked to verify they meet our requirements to guarantee consistent quality.
    Proven experience icon

    Proven experience


    35 years experience in developing and manufacturing UV-C products 
    Application fields icon

    Application fields


    Suitable in various applications, both professional and residential

    Application fields

     

    Philips offers a full range of UV lamps and drivers that are suitable for use in various applications in residential water and air treatment, municipal and industrial water purification and commercial & professional air purification.

    Disinfection for air image
    Air
    Disinfection for surface image
    Surface
    Disinfection for water image
    Water

    A word of caution


    UV-C lamps present minimum risk when used by professionals who know how to use them. They must shield their eyes and skin to avoid light damage and severe injuries to the eyes and skin. We advise customers to exercise caution when selecting equipment and look for evidence of third party testing as well as certification of device materials and electrical components by well-known organizations such as NSF, UL, CSA, DVGW-OVGW or other international requirements as applicable.
     

    At this moment, none of our UV-C lamps are certified or approved under any applicable laws as a medical device and as such, Signify and/or any of its group companies do not currently intend for them to be used as medical devices anywhere in the world. Plants and/or materials that are exposed to higher dosages of UV-C may become damaged and/or discolored.

    1. EPA Report, “Building Retrofits for Increased Protection Against Airborne Chemical and Biological Releases” Pg. 56 ​
    2. Fluence (UV Dose) Required to Achieve Incremental Log Inactivation of Bacteria, Protozoa, Viruses and Algae Revised, updated and expanded by Adel Haji Malayeri, Madjid Mohseni, Bill Cairns and James R. Bolton. With earlier contributions by Gabriel Chevrefils (2006) and Eric Caron (2006) With peer review by Benoit Barbeau, Harold Wright (1999) and Karl G. Linden
    3. A comparison of pulsed and continuous ultraviolet light sources for the decontamination of surfaces. McDonald K.F., Curry R.D., Clevenger T.E., Unklesbay K., Eisenstark A., Golden J., Morgan R.D. IEEE Trans. Plasma Sci. 2000;28:1581–1587. doi: 10.1109/27.901237.