UV disinfection in airplanes?

The American aircraft manufacturer Boeing is testing a portable system capable of disinfecting the inside of aircraft. The aircraft manufacturer would like to propose this new solution to airlines to allow a faster return of passengers.

A UV system tested inside a cockpit (credits:Boeing)

A rapidly developing technology 

The new tool will be used to disinfect surfaces (cockpit, cabin, toilets and galleys). In the cockpit and its electronics, the use of disinfectant sprays is impossible. In a cabin, seat cleaning must be done in just a few minutes, especially on low-cost airlines, which often have very short turnaround times.

"We are testing this product with a dozen airlines, in particular Etihad and ANA, to understand their needs and to find out what difficulties remain to be solved," explained Kevin Callahan, Product Development Engineer at Boeing. 

UV systems were already being used to destroy the DNA and RNA of pathogens prior to the coronavirus pandemic. During the coronavirus pandemic, UV made a comeback. In South Korea, anti-coronavirus bus shelters and screening booths are already equipped with UV lamps.

Honeywell system against viruses (credits:Honeywell)

How the system works 

The amount of UV-C must first be determined. The target dose for the COVID-19 virus is approximately 600 μJ/cm2. Depending on the power delivered by the UV system, this is directly translated into an exposure time (e.g. how long the system has to be switched on) or a travel speed (e.g. how slowly the mobile system has to move).

Honeywell Aerospace already offers a system that can disinfect the cabin of a single aisle aircraft in only 10 minutes (30 to 40 minutes for a wide-body aircraft) using UVC ultraviolet light. UVC refers to ultraviolet light with wavelengths between 200 and 280 nm. The portable cart advances thanks to a battery, whose autonomy corresponds to approximately 12 planes.

U.S. airline JetBlue, for example, decided to test the innovation for 90 days.

As a reminder, the action of UV against certain bacteria and viruses has already been confirmed. Against SARS and MERS for example, studies have shown a 90 to 99.999% reduction in the amount of viruses. However, against SARS VOC-2, no study has really demonstrated the effectiveness of these wavelengths.

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