One-hour kill rate claim for Tri Air purification unit
A bioscience medical device invented by scientists in Britain is claimed to eradicate the MRSA ‘superbug’ and other bacteria and viruses on surfaces in one hour.
According to a report by the UK HPA Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response in Porton Down last year, this device uses a number of established technologies to trigger a ‘chain reaction’ that purifies air within a closed environment.
Non-thermal plasma, ultraviolet catalysis and Open Air Factor (OAF) are the three decontamination technologies used to create a process that continually ‘scrubs’ the air clean to create a fresh air environment.
Unlike air filtration systems, the UK patented prototype is effective even without processing all of the air in a room through the unit. Clean air can be achieved harmlessly, even within a room that is occupied by humans.
In recent tests, MRSA bacteria were exposed to the air purification system and destroyed in less than one hour. And according to the UK HPA Centre, a 2007 report highlighted that the unit took less than two minutes to kill airborne test bacteria Staphylococcus.
This purification process is 100 times more effective than any current method of decontamination and can maintain air purity for as long as the unit is operational, according to inventors Tri-Air Developments - co-founded by microbiologists at Promanade and technology transfer specialists Inventa Partners and the UK's (BRE).
The unit can be readily adapted for medical applications, such as within large ventilation systems or for portable use in a single room. Commercialisation advisors
The unit creates an OAF rich in hydroxyl radicals, to destroy microbes including flu and cold viruses and bacteria, both in the air and on surface contact. Hydroxyl radicals are found naturally in abundance in outdoor fresh air, with high concentrations in forested mountain areas, and are completely harmless to people.
The decontamination process occurs both within and outside the machine, to create a continual supply of hydroxyl radicals dispersed throughout a room, making it effective even without processing all of the air through the unit.