A Simple Guide on Bipolar Ion Disinfection to Help Improve Indoor Wellness.
Related Questions:
What are bipolar ions?
Do ions disinfect viruses and bacteria?
How do ions work as a disinfection method?
There are so many disinfection methods out there. How do you sort between the terrible, the good, and the best solutions for your facility? Most community wellness professionals have heard from dozens of companies about the “latest” disinfection technology to protect their environments. Why should you choose a product that uses ionization technology?
Our approach to disinfection technology is a bit different. Rather than creating new disinfection technology, we have sought “tried and true” technology but designed new ways to use it. We rely on the potency of ultraviolet-C lightwave and the effectiveness of bipolar ions to provide complete and comprehensive disinfection. Our solutions are concentrated applications of naturally-occurring disinfection methods.
You can read more about Ultraviolet-C technology in our earlier blog post.
What are Bipolar Ions?
Simply put, bipolar ions are Oxygen ions that carry a positive or negative charge. These exact same ions are produced by the sun and are an extremely common part of our atmosphere.
All ions carry a charge from one of the two polarities (+ or -). Inherently built into each ion is the need to restabilize its charge. Negative ions have an extra electron, so they must bond to a positive ion since it is missing an electron. This bond stabilizes the ions, and they become inactive as they fall to the ground. Most people see the result as “dust.” Every time you run your Swiffer over a surface, you remove the result of positive and negative ions bonding.
How Do These Charged Ions Disinfect a Room?
The basic concept of our disinfection technology is to take the naturally occurring bond from our everyday lives and flood an environment with it. Our products effectively create billions of these charged oxygen ions that saturate the room. Increasing the volume of ions in the room makes it extremely difficult for harmful viruses and bacteria to survive.
The microorganisms in your facility also carry an electrical charge. Pathogens like viruses, bacteria, protozoa, and mold carry a charge. As the charged oxygen ions seek to restabilize, they will repeatedly bond to these pathogens. Thus, they are neutralized and fall to the ground to be swept up by your team.
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Are Bipolar Ions Safe for My Plants and Staff?
We use a needlepoint plasma generator made by Global Plasma Solutions, designed and used for residential buildings and home installations. The bipolar ion generator is designed for 24/7 operation. The way that it works is by increasing ion density in environments. Using an ion generator, we increase the quantity of positively and negatively charged ions and improve the air quality. Plasma Air technology produces a natural bio-climate rich in positive and negative oxygen ions. The negative ions contain an extra electron, while the positive ions are missing an electron resulting in an unstable condition. To restabilize, these ions seek out atoms and molecules in the air to trade electrons with, effectively neutralizing microbes, bacteria, virus cells, odorous gases, aerosols, and VOCs.
These products have been validated to receive the UL 2998 Ozone-Free certification.
Plasma Air conducted an Ozone test using their commercial unit, the 7000 series, with Intertek Labs in accordance with UL Standard 867 Section 40. The system passed, and ozone concentration was measured at 0.001 ppm by volume.
A test was also conducted for airborne bacteria, mold, and yeast reduction. Testing results showed a 99.43% reduction of Escherichia coli, an 81.67% reduction of Staphylococcus aureus, a 97.14% reduction of Aspergillus niger, a 97.69% reduction of Candida albios and 36.27% reduction of Cladosporium cladospoioides.
The Journal of Aerosol Science conducted a study on the effect of air ions on aerosolized bacteriophage MS2 virus was studied. MS2 is a commonly used surrogate for the influenza virus and is now being used as a surrogate for other RNA viruses, such as SARS CoV-1 and SARS CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19. The results indicated that bipolar ion treatment is more effective than unipolar ion treatment and antiviral efficiency increased with ion exposure.