Scientists have reported Far-UVC light is an effective way to kill airborne SARS-CoV-2 in a room-sized lab chamber (March 2022, Nature) without the health and safety risks of exposure to typical UV — a finding that could make wearing masks in such environments less important, while reducing the need for excess ventilation.

The report said: “Many infectious diseases, including COVID-19 [and influenza], are transmitted by airborne pathogens. There is a need for effective environmental control measures which, ideally, are not reliant on human behavior [such as masking].” [Brackets ours]

“At a room ventilation rate of 3 air-changes-per-hour (ACH) … the steady-state pathogen load was reduced by 98.4% providing an additional 184 equivalent air changes (ACH).”

The study needs validation in actual full-sized rooms such as classrooms.