Data supporting "Impact of Surface Properties on Viral Inactivation by UV254 Disinfection"

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the UV industries’ limited knowledge in the surface disinfection sector. This study evaluates the effectiveness of UV254 as a disinfection technology of MS-2 bacteriophage on five surfaces: aluminum, ceramic, Formica laminate, PTFE and stainless steel. These surfaces provide a range of surface characteristics and represent some of the commonly used surfaces in healthcare facilities. The efficacy of UV254 for surface disinfection varies greatly by surface type. Equivalency testing revealed that the dose response curves for each surface are not “practically equivalent.” The results reveal that the aluminum surface consistently had the lowest viral recoveries for all doses tested, which approached the microbial detection limit. This phenomenon is thought to be caused by surface interactions such as adsorption or inactivation due to oxidation. These interactions are important as they prevent the recovery of MS-2 without exposure to UV254. The dose response curve for PTFE was much steeper than ceramic, Formica laminate and stainless steel, as the MS-2 was inactivated to below the detection limit at a UV dose of 25 mJ/cm2. This was likely due to the reflectivity of the Teflon surface. In addition, the characteristics of the surfaces were examined thoroughly. Images of each surface were determined using SEM, which produced a detailed photograph of the surfaces at a nanometer scale. From the SEM images, the porosity of each surface type could be calculated. Through further analysis, it was determined that porosity, surface roughness and contact angle correlate directly to viral retention on the surface.