Deep-ultraviolet LEDs are widely used, including: disinfection of drinking water, air, beverages, and pharmaceutical packaging; disinfection of surgical instruments and adherence to sterility; in the refrigerator, it kills surviving mold spores, and extends the shelf life of food. In addition to disinfection, deep-ultraviolet LEDs can also perform photochemical catalysis, ink curing, and so on.
Following the development of science and technology, deep-ultraviolet LEDs have replaced the original application skills and products with a broad market application prospect. We compare deep-ultraviolet LEDs with some of the products they replace, and their advantages are significant:
Mercury lamps: In the medical and food fields, low-pressure mercury lamps are often used for sterilization. However, because mercury simply damages the environment, researchers have always expected to find environmentally-friendly alternatives with excellent functions. Deep ultraviolet is a kind of ultraviolet light with a relatively short wavelength, which has a relatively high power to kill bacteria and viruses. Although the total output power of the traditional mercury lamp is large, the output light intensity per unit area is very weak, only a few percent of that of the 280nm UV LED. Therefore, the deep-ultraviolet 280-nanometer band LED is more suitable for rapid disinfection at close intervals than traditional mercury lamps, and the equipment is extraordinarily compact.
Traditional UV lamp: Because of the requirements of its operating principle, the traditional UV lamp has a huge volume and requires high-voltage lighting compared with LEDs that are classified as semiconductor products. In addition, although the total output power of the traditional mercury lamp is large, the output light intensity per unit area is very weak, only a few percent of that of the 280nm UV LED. Therefore, the deep-ultraviolet 280-nanometer band LED is more suitable for rapid disinfection at close intervals than traditional mercury lamps, and the equipment is extraordinarily compact.
Mercury lamp: Compared with mercury lamp ultraviolet light source, deep ultraviolet LED based on aluminum gallium nitride (AlGaN) data has the advantages of consolidation, energy saving, long life, mercury-free environmental protection, etc., and is gradually entering the traditional application category of mercury lamps.
Nowadays, LED lighting is very popular, blue light damage has entered everyone's field of vision once, leading to many comments in the industry. How big is the blue light damage? Visual inspection is currently inconclusive. So does deep ultraviolet LED damage the human body? A reporter from the New Century LED Network learned on the Internet that the power of deep ultraviolet 280 nanometer band LEDs is very small, and its efficient sterilization depends on extremely high illuminance per unit area, rather than high power. The illuminance per unit area of the LED is inversely proportional to the square of the interval. Therefore, outside the sterilization operation interval, the effect of deep ultraviolet LED on human skin is minimal. In addition, deep-ultraviolet LEDs are compact, easy to hide and plan, and general glass and plastic less than 0.1 mm thick can completely absorb deep ultraviolet. Just like the lighters, knives, power sockets, etc. in ordinary days, the safety of UV LED products can be completely ensured if they are used correctly and properly planned.
At present, the main purpose of deep ultraviolet UV-LED is sterilization and disinfection, and its application fields involve air sterilization, food sterilization and other fields. Because it adopts the principle of physical destruction, unlike chemical disinfection, it is not affected by temperature, concentration, activity and other factors. It is non-toxic, non-residual, and non-odor, especially suitable for air, water and surface disinfection.
According to industry insiders, the global market for traditional ultraviolet mercury lamps was approximately US$800 million in 2013, and the scale of equipment and systems can be magnified 10 times to approximately US$8 billion. The market scale of ultraviolet LED light source is estimated to reach more than US$8 billion due to complete replacement and expansion of new application areas. According to the forecast of foreign authoritative organizations: the UV LED market will grow at an annual rate of 30% in the next 5 years.
