Most medical facilities use ultraviolet radiation to disinfect air, surfaces, water and medical instruments. It affects the environment and leads to the death of many harmful microorganisms.
What is an irradiator?
The principle of operation of devices designed for air disinfection is the same. Each bactericidal irradiator produces ultraviolet light, the wavelength of which is about 253.7 nanometers. The power of such devices, as a rule, is not large. It ranges from 8 to 60 watts. In most cases, these are low pressure mercury lamps .
Bactericidal ultraviolet irradiators consist of a housing that can be attached to a wall or wall, ballast, power cable, switch. Also included is the lamp itself. It looks like a tube-cylinder and is made of special glass. At its ends are soldered electrodes made of tungsten wire. The disinfecting effect is achieved due to radiation that occurs due to a glow discharge located in mercury vapor at low pressure.
There are also xenon flash lamps. They also disinfect the room, while it is not contaminated with mercury vapor. Moreover, disinfection with their help requires less time, because they create pulses of powerful radiation. But they have one big drawback, due to which only mercury lamps are used everywhere. Their work requires high-voltage, expensive, sophisticated equipment.
Varieties
There are several types of irradiators. In medical, cosmetology centers, offices often use stationary devices. They can be attached to the canvas or wall, on their case there are special grooves for fixing. Any such bactericidal irradiator is quite simple. The right choice of installation location allows you to make processing rooms as efficient as possible.
Mobile lamps are attached to a special rack. It can be equipped with wheels to facilitate movement. Such options are well suited for large rooms. Lamps on racks that can be moved can be directed in one or different directions, arranged in a circle or be narrowly directed, and they can also be equipped with reflectors.
In addition, on sale you can find irradiators-recirculators (they are also called irradiators of the closed type). They are designed for long-term work in rooms where people and animals are. But the bactericidal UV irradiator of the open type can be turned on only where there are no living things. After his work, it is advisable to ventilate the room.
In addition, there are no-ozone and ozone irradiators. The devices of the first type use a special material for the manufacture of a lamp bulb that does not transmit waves whose length is less than 200 nm. Ozone lamps emit spectral lines shorter than 200 nm. In this case, ozone is formed in the air.
Recirculator Features
For rooms where there are a large number of people, including children, it is advisable to install illuminators of a closed type. Due to the fact that during their work there is no need to remove people and animals from the premises, they can work almost constantly. Such devices can be included in schools in lessons, in kindergartens, in offices throughout the day. They work quite quietly, so they can be used even at night.
The principle of operation of recirculators is based on the fact that there is a quartz lamp inside their body . The bactericidal irradiator is designed in such a way that its body completely shields the ultraviolet radiation. Air disinfection is achieved due to the fact that it enters and leaves the device through specially designed ventilation holes. The cleaning process itself takes place directly in the irradiator.
Rules for using open lamps
Many medical institutions do not have recirculators installed, but open type devices. With their help, a fairly wide area around is disinfected. In this case, not only air is cleaned, but also all surfaces that are in the room. But you should always remember that a bactericidal irradiator has a detrimental effect on all living organisms. It can affect the skin, mucous membranes. Before you turn on the quartz lamp, you must remove all living things from the room, including aquariums with fish and plants.
Taking into account the fact that in many medical institutions such lamps are installed directly in the wards, it is important to tell each incoming patient about the rules for their use. It is necessary to explain what the result of being in a room with an illuminator on can lead to. Quartzing in the premises should be done by nurses.
How to choose
There are several basic nuances that you need to know about when you choose a bactericidal irradiator. The lamp must be of a certain power, which corresponds to the area of the room. The larger the treated area, the stronger the unit should be.
The type of irradiator is also important. The most optimal are ceiling structures. But for wall options there are limitations: they can not be placed on surfaces made of natural wood or glued with wallpaper. Under the influence of ultraviolet light, these coatings may turn black.
If you want to disinfect several rooms at the same time, then a mobile irradiator will be the best option. Some manufacturers complete such lamps with a special platform, which is designed to facilitate the movement of the device from room to room.
Particular attention should be paid to the documentation. You can only buy the medical device that has instructions, all permits, including a certificate.
OBN-150 irradiator
Russian manufacturers are able to produce quartz lamps, the effectiveness of the bactericidal action of which reaches 99.9%. A striking example is the bactericidal irradiator OBN-150.
This quartz lamp can be installed not only in medical institutions, including hospitals, but also in bacteriological laboratories, industrial enterprises, blood transfusion stations, in canteens, cinemas, gyms and other crowded places.
Using OBN-150, you can sanitize air, household items, and water intended for drinking. All this can prevent infection by bacteria and viruses. A room with a volume of 150 m 3 requires 35 minutes of lamp operation for its complete disinfection.
The DB-30M quartz lamps included in the kit are made of uvolev glass. It quietly transmits radiation at the level of 253.7 nm, but delays shorter waves whose length does not reach 200 nm. This can prevent the formation of ozone in the air during operation of the apparatus.
The operating life of the lamps that enter the bactericidal OBN-150 irradiator is 8 thousand hours. The rated power of the device is 60 watts, it is capable of producing a bactericidal flow of about 22.4 watts. Moreover, its service life is 5 years.
For those planning a purchase, it is important to know that the device weighs 2.32 kg, its length is 942 mm, its height is 162 mm and its width is 54 mm. These options will help you choose the most suitable installation location.
Irradiator "Azov"
Now more advanced quartz lamps have been developed that can work both in the presence of people and carry out quick disinfection in empty rooms. The bactericidal irradiator Azov is distinguished by its original design and ease of use. There are several models in this series. They vary in power, number of lamps and sizes.
They are intended for disinfecting air and various surfaces in rooms. There are two-lamp models, the electrical circuit of which allows you to include them separately. That is, while people are indoors, a shielded lamp can work, and in their absence, an ordinary lamp. Distinctive features of irradiators of the Azov series are a long lamp life, high performance and reliability. With their help, you can evenly disinfect air in large rooms.
For example, the wall-mounted bactericidal irradiator Azov is equipped with two 30 W lamps each. It emits waves with a length of 253.7 nm. Its electrical circuit allows you to turn on only the top shielded lamp. In this case, plants and people may remain indoors. The power of the irradiator is 30 watts.
It was found that the efficiency of such a quartz lamp is 0.65. At the same time, the disinfection capacity at an efficiency of 99.9% is 132 m 3 every hour.
Irradiators of the Azov series can be used not only in medical institutions, such as clinics, hospitals, maternity hospitals, dentists, cosmetology centers. They are also recommended for use in food industry workshops, vegetable stores, canteens, food units for the disinfection of containers and products. The use of lamps in children's educational and sports facilities allows the destruction of 99.9% of microorganisms on the premises.
The main thing is to be careful when turning on and not to confuse the lamps, one of which can be turned on in the presence of people, and the other should be used only in empty rooms. After all, the use of an unshielded lighting disinfecting device can cause erythema and photophthalmia of the skin. For quick disinfection of the room, two lamps can be turned on simultaneously.
Methods for using quartz devices
There is a special technology by which the premises should be decontaminated. It is not necessary that the quartz bactericidal irradiator operate without interruption. In rooms of all types, closed lamps that can be operated in the presence of people must be continuously functioning for 1-2 hours. In the premises of medical institutions, such as treatment rooms, dressing rooms, laboratories, blood transfusion stations, operating rooms, open-type devices are used. They must be turned on for 15-30 minutes. The break between exposure sessions should be at least 1-2 hours.
Lamps for treatment: indications
But not all quartz lamps are equally harmful to living things. There are, for example, devices designed for ultraviolet therapy. So, treatment with such irradiators can be indicated for patients suffering from bronchial asthma, acute neuralgia, peripheral nerve neuropathy, reactive and rheumatoid arthritis, deforming arthrosis, traumatic lesions of the musculoskeletal system and skin. They are also effective in the treatment of protracted bronchitis, promote healing of purulent wounds, bedsores, boils, inflammatory infiltrates. They are also recommended to use them for the treatment of herpes zoster, erysipelas, which occurs in acute or chronic form, and various gynecological inflammatory diseases.
In addition, a bactericidal irradiator can be used for intracavitary irradiation. With its help, conditions for periodontitis, gingvinitis, periodontal disease, acute and chronic pharyngitis, tonsillitis, rhinitis are relieved. Irradiation contributes to a more rapid treatment of acute respiratory infections, inflammation in the middle and outer parts of the ears.
Contraindications
But there are a number of situations when an irradiator cannot be used for treatment. A bactericidal lamp is contraindicated in the presence of any malignant neoplasms, regardless of the course of the disease, after radical operations, with systemic diseases of the connective tissue, exacerbations of peptic ulcer disease, chronic hepatitis, photodermatosis and increased sensitivity to UV rays.
It is also not recommended to use a bactericidal irradiator in patients with an active form of pulmonary tuberculosis, with tendencies to bleeding, circulatory failure, hyperthyroidism, arterial hypertension, with acute cerebrovascular accident, severe atherosclerosis, renal and liver failure. In addition, the device is not used for febrile conditions, in the first 3 weeks after myocardial infarction.
Irradiator "Sun"
You can use quartz lamps both in medical facilities and at home. If you plan to use the device in your home, then you can purchase a UV bactericidal UV irradiator "Sun."
He has a plastic case. On the front side, it closes with a special retractable screen. There are holes in it, in which replaceable tubes are fixed.
Safety glasses that are designed for children’s size are included with the irradiator. Also included is a Gorbachev biodosimeter. Using this device, you can determine the individual biodose, which will be calculated taking into account all the physiological characteristics of the patient. This allows you to optimally select the radiation power even for young children.
Before the procedure, it is necessary to install the necessary nozzle-tube, turn on the device and wait about 5 minutes. After stabilizing the burning of the lamp, you can begin to begin treatment. If local therapy is needed, then the shutter must be removed. Using a lamp, you can irradiate limited areas of the skin, the area of which does not exceed 600 cm 2 .
By the way, the bactericidal irradiator "Sun" can be used to disinfect rooms. To do this, you just need to remove the protective screen and turn on the device for about 30 minutes. Before such a procedure, do not forget to remove the plants from the premises, remove people and animals.
Usage Reviews
The effectiveness of quartz lamps for indoor use has been proven by many studies. It has been confirmed that irradiators are the cause of destructive photochemical modifying damage in the DNA structure of microorganisms. The most sensitive are cocci and sticks - bacteria of a vegetative form. Protozoa and fungi are not so sensitive to the radiation that a bactericidal irradiator emits. Feedback from experts and researchers suggests that spore forms of bacteria are the least susceptible.
If we talk about medical devices, it becomes interesting to the opinion of the patients who used them. So, many say that with their help you can completely get rid of rhinitis, manifestations of skin diseases, alleviate the condition with acute respiratory infections. All these problems helps to solve the bactericidal irradiator "Sun". True, he also has drawbacks. These, in particular, include the curtain, which has no mount, and not too comfortable glasses. Also, some patients say that it is not entirely clear how to change the lamp if it burns out.