WO2021262014A1

WO2021262014A1 - A method for removing allergens and disinfecting of rooms, in particular rooms occupied by people

Info

Publication number: WO2021262014A1
Application number: PCT/PL2021/000037
Authority: WO
Inventors: Maciej SZYMAŃSKI
Original assignee: STER INSTYTUT Maciej Szymański
Priority date: 2020-06-22
Filing date: 2021-06-17
Publication date: 2021-12-30
Also published as: PL434404A1

Abstract

The subject of the invention is a method for removing allergens and disinfecting of rooms, in particular rooms occupied by people. It is characterized that in the first phase of ozone is introduced into the room is maintained for a period exceeding 30 minutes since an ozone concentration exceeds 2 ppm, that is, 4.28 mg/m³, after which the ozone is removed from the room by using ozone deactivating measures to obtain a normal, standard air concentration of ozone in the room, which are UV-C light with a wavelength of 100-260 nm and titanium dioxide and/or mechanical filters, including HEPA type, and/or activated carbon, after which measures maintaining the air cleanliness are introduced, which are UV-C light with a wavelength of 100- 260 nm and titanium dioxide and/or mechanical filters, and/or antimicrobial properties of precious and semi-precious metals.

Description

A method for removing allergens and disinfecting of rooms, in particular rooms occupied by people

The subject of the invention is a method for removing allergens and disinfecting of rooms, in particular rooms occupied by people.

Presently we place a special attention to hygiene and disinfection of our environment. The requirements of environmental hygiene impact the health of people who spend time indoors. Failure to adhere to these requirements increases the risk of allergies, which result in pulmonary diseases and co morbidities.

To minimise the risk to humans caused by air pollution related diseases, many actions intended to clean room air are used.

Highest risks are present in generally accessible places and environments, in which many people are present at the same time, and where frequent exchange of persons present occurs.

These places include, among others;

Public transit, doctor's offices, treatment rooms, clinics, hotel rooms, restaurants, classrooms, operation rooms, gyms, cloakrooms etc. All these facilities are at risk of increased transmission of bacteria, viruses, fungi and moulds. The indicated micro-organisms may have a significant impact on human life and health, which is why a special role should be placed on ensuring a maximum protection of persons present in a given environment.

It should be however taken into account that agents which have a destructive impact on bacteria, viruses, fungi and moulds also have a negative impact on all live plant and animal organisms, including also humans.

The chemicals which are disposed of have a negative impact on the environment long after the loss of bactericidal properties.

That is why an especially interesting solution is the use of naturally occurring phenomena are in the service of maintaining public health. One of such phenomena which have a positive impact on our environment is the skilfully used phenomenon of ozone treatment and the use of UV-C light.

Ozone used to fill out a room has strong bactericidal properties, similarly to UV- C light.

Each of these methods may not be used in direct contact with humans, since both methods while having a negative impact on bacteria and viruses also have a negative impact on human body.

That is why the use of ozone treatment and UV-C phenomena will only be positive when both these methods are used in a manner that ensures their impacts complement each other and serve human health.

Most of methods of disinfecting closed rooms are performed by the forcing of air with active agents with fan-based systems.

Ozone treatment and UV-C techniques are known as effective microbicidal methods.

Both systems have significant flaws which limit their use separately.

Ozone is a gas which is harmful to human health, and human presence in an environment with ozone concentration outside of standard is hazardous to health. At the same time ozone breakdown time is long enough that it prevents the use of the facility subject to ozone treatment for up to a few hours.

An advantage of ozone presence in the air is its activity in every point reached by air with ozone.

Whereas UV-C radiation also has anti-microbial activity.

However, it acts only on the surfaces that are illuminated by the UV-C light. Surfaces which are not illuminated are subjected to a limited impact by the halo effect. An advantage of UV-C solutions is the possibility of humans using the room right after the UV-C radiating lamp is turned off.

A disadvantage of the solution is the removal of micro-organisms from illuminated surfaces only and leaving the zones shaded from UV-C light in their original states, which restricts the impact of radiation.

In the presented solution the features of both technologies were used, introducing additionally physical and chemical features of other elements of natural impact.

All elements of the process are complementary and mutually supporting.

An effect of the use of solution described below will be the creation of an environment for humans which is more advantageous to health than being outdoors.

The principle of the solution is a multi-phase cleaning of the air and rooms intended for human inhabitation.

The essence of the solution, which is a method for removing allergens and disinfecting of rooms, in particular rooms occupied by people, by the inhabitants leaving the room, introducing ozone into the room in a known manner with known fan systems for forcing the movement of air, maintaining the ozone in the room until the room is fully disinfected, and then removing the ozone from the space, consists of the first phase of ozone being introduced into the room and maintaining it for a period exceeding 30 minutes since ozone concentration exceeds 2 ppm, that is, 4.28 mg/m³, after which the ozone is removed from the room by using ozone deactivating measures to obtain a normal, standard air concentration of ozone in the room, which are UV-C light with a wavelength of 100-260 nm and titanium dioxide and/or mechanical filters, including HEPA type filters and/or activated carbon, after which measures maintaining the air cleanliness are introduced, which are UV-C light with a wavelength of 100- 260 nm and titanium dioxide and/or mechanical filters, and/or using antimicrobial properties of precious and semi-precious metals.

Comprehensive use of the described methods provides the effect of optimising of the ozone treatment duration, and thus the period during which the rooms are taken out of use, and ensures maximum safety of the humans in the presence of the device when they are present in the given environment. All the described methods are effects which occur in nature and are natural phenomena which surround us.

Additional advantages include anti-allergenic activity.

Free radicals of titanium compounds by binding to organic substances have an anti-allergenic activity. UV light, ozone, HEPA type filters, activated carbon not only remove smells, but also have anti-allergenic properties. They stop pollen and remove microorganisms with allergic properties.

The subject of the invention, in an example, but not limiting, implementation was presented below.

In the first phase of the process after all the people leave the room ozone treatment is conducted with known ozone-generating devices, intended for ozone treatment of rooms by using known ventilation devices to force the movement of air containing the active agent. The ozone treatment device or a set of ozone treatment devices, depending on the size and shape of the rooms conducts the first phase of cleaning and disinfecting the room by generating ozone.

The duration of the process should exceed 30 minutes since an ozone concentration exceeds 2 ppm, that is, over 4.28 mg/m³ of ozone in the room's air.

Second phase

Access of personnel to the given room is still excluded due to harmful impact of ozone on human health.

In this phase ozone has to be removed from the room, since it has played its role and in order to allow humans to work the room's ozone level must be brought down below the upper level of the standard.

For this purpose, phenomena which destroy ozone are used, such as:

- UV-C illumination with a wavelength that break down ozone, e.g. 100-280 nm and titanium dioxide,

- Semiconductor phenomenon of titanium compounds for the creation of free radicals which destroy exhaust gases. Mechanical filters, including HEPA type filters, and/or activated carbon compounds are also used, which break down ozone and purify air.

The second phase is intended to remove the excess of now unneeded oz:one from the air.

Clean the room from a maximum possible amount of pollution in a given room.

The second phase should last until a standard level of ozone in the air is achieved. This process depends on the concentration of ozone and on the temperature in the room.

Third phase

This is the time for the activity of persons present in the room.

As part of third phase in order to maintain optimum conditions of hygiene and disinfection with no harmful impact on human health, phenomena from second phase are used, despite the fact that there is no more ozone in the air.

However, the impact of phenomena of UV-C in a zone of direct illumination with no human access, of activated carbon compounds, of titanium compounds, and mechanical filters will ensure environmental conditions cleaner than the conditions outdoors, that is, “fresh air”.

It is also advantageous to use at the same time other natural phenomena, that its, natural antimicrobial properties of precious and semiprecious metals, e.g. silver, copper, zinc.

The use of aforementioned materials for common daily products also reduces the number of micro-organisms in our direct environment.

Any enclosures of antimicrobial materials, antimicrobial coatings, antimicrobial contact surfaces (railings, grips, handles etc.) supplement hygienic processes.

Third phase lasts until the first phase starts again, which closes the cycle of the product.

The entire process is subjected to monitoring, control and supervision.

An IT system is also an element of monitoring.

The automatic supervision system allows the maintenance services to take immediate measures of planned maintenance and possible repairs. The solution's manufactured based on system data will receive information about the effectiveness of the system and about data which enabLe further development of the service by adapting solutions to perform further taslcs for the system.

The control and information tasks are implemented by a wireless system based on Internet networks.

For persons who are present in a room or plan their stay, this is information about the level of sanitary safety during the planned stay. This may be key information for somebody choosing a place for a temporary stay.

Claims

Patent claims

A method for removing allergens and disinfecting of rooms, in particular rooms occupied by people, by the inhabitants leaving the room, introducing ozone into the room in a known manner with known fan systems for forcing the movement of air, maintaining the ozone in the room until the room is fully disinfected, and then removing the ozone from the space, characterized in that in the first phase ozone is introduced into the room and is maintained for a period exceeding 30 minutes since ozone concentration exceeds 2 ppm, that is, 4.28 mg/m³, after which the ozone is removed from the room by using ozone deactivating measures to obtain a normal, standard air concentration of ozone in the room, which are UV-C light with a wavelength of 100-260 nm and titanium dioxide and/or mechanical filters, including HEPA type, and/or activated carbon, after which measures maintaining the air cleanliness are introduced, which are UV-C light with a wavelength of 100-260 nm and titanium dioxide and/or mechanical filters, and/or antimicrobial properties of precious and semi-precious metals.