Mathematical Modeling of ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) Inactivation of Airborne Microorganisms employing a Photoreactor?

MARTINEZ RETAMAR, M. E; CASSANO, ALBERTO E.; BRANDI, RODOLFO J.; LABAS, MARISOL D.

Almeria

Conferencia; 3rd European Conference on Environmental Applications of Advanced Oxidation Processes (EAAOP3); 2013

Systems which employ UVGI to inactivate bioaerosols have been widely used for several years. This work presents a kinetic study of the rate of inactivation of Escherichia coli aerosolized, employing a UV photoreactor that was designed and constructed with the purpose of obtain experimental data. From experimental data, in addition to a mass balance within the reactor, an evaluation of the radiation field in three dimensions, and employing a computational routine, the intrinsic kinetic constant of UVGI inactivation was estimated. Results showed that UVGI inactivation process can be modeled using a first-order kinetic model respect to inlet E. coli concentration and incident radiation. In addition, this model allowed to predict the UV dose necessary to inactivate aerosolized E. coli.