Suresh G. Joshi
Drexel University College of Medicine, USA
Title: An Alternative Approaches to inactivate Air-Borne Pathogens: A Model Study
Biography
Biography: Suresh G. Joshi
Abstract
Biological aerosols (Bioaerosols) are environmental aerosols that contain microorganisms in them. These bioaerosols can be very effective in transmitting diseases caused by those pathogens. Most systems control microbes through particulate filters, wherein the pathogens are merely trapped which subsequently survive for long periods of time over filters. These microbes can even proliferate, and cause infections at distant places after dissemination. Hence there is a need of a technology which can effectively inactivate microbes in a very short exposure time, so their further transmission can be controlled. Currently, many technologies are been investigated for this purpose, which include carbon nanotubes, UV radiation, electrostatic fields and more recently, the use of microwave and heat treatment. Plasma technology, especially non-thermal plasma technology has been increasing used as a tool for disinfection and sterilization. Earlier research carried out at our Drexel Plasma Institute has demonstrated the effectiveness of Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) plasma system. The proof-of-concept study presented here demonstrates the effective inactivation (> 5 logs of CFU) of a variety of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial pathogens in the form of bioaerosls, in seconds inside the laboratory-scale model of an HVAC system, using a single filament, point to point DBD. This is an attractive and effective alternative approach to control bioaerosol and thus transmission of infectious agent. (* Presenting Author).