Optronics International, a manufacturer and supplier of LED vehicle lighting, has unveiled its new LED-based Purilite Light-Shield decontaminating light. It will be on display at booth 2534 during the 2019 NTEA Work Truck Show in Indianapolis.
“Airborne and surface-based mold and bacteria are also a concern for those workers on vehicles that are exposed to biological residue and other contaminants,” said Brett Johnson, president and CEO of Optronics International. “Sleeper cabs, vehicles with multiple users, and dry bulk and refrigerated food transportation haulers may be at greater risk of exposure. The climate a vehicle operates in may also be a factor in allergen and pathogen proliferation.”
Many who work in, on and around vehicles are exposed to microscopic airborne pollutants. The Environmental Protection Agency has developed ambient air quality trends for particle pollution, also called particulate matter (PM). PM 2.5 describes fine inhalable solid particles and liquid droplets, with diameters that are generally 2.5 micrometers and smaller. These particles include many types of mold and bacteria found in vehicles transporting food. PM2.5 also includes soot emitted by diesel engines and APUs.
Purilite Light-Shield LED lamps generate a constant stream of negative ions, created by a proprietary coating applied to their LEDs. The lamp provides decontamination and sanitization functions, while producing optimal light quality for human vision, approaching the color temperature of natural sunlight, according to the company.
The ionic sanitization occurs through both physical and biological mechanisms. The negative ions bind to lightweight airborne PM2.5 particles, adding mass and enabling natural gravitational forces to remove them from the air by causing them to float to the ground.
The negative ions also combine with positive molecules in mold spores and bacterial proteins, destroying them and causing them to decompose. Once terminated, what’s left of the pathogens also fall inertly to the ground.
“When the lights are on, they are doing their job, it’s deceptively simple,” Johnson said. “A sleeper cab driver can flip on these lights, go grab a bite and when they return, the cab environment will be significantly cleaner. If they prefer, drivers can remain in the cab while the lights are working, it’s perfectly safe just to leave them on.”
“Optronics’ Purilite Light-Shield is the first technology to transcend simple surface-oriented decontamination methods and move toward cleansing the entire interior environment of a vehicle, including the air,” said Johnson.
