GE1321 Our Life in the Nuclear Age

Stopping the COVID-19 Pandemic

with Micro-lightning Air Sanitization Technology

Ir Prof Herman Tsui

What has nuclear engineering

COVID-19
to do with air sanitization?

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 Protect Your Health in populated indoor space
Needs for effective air disinfection Protected
by Plascide
 Constant Mutation of virus/germs - SARS
unpredictable to immunize against Air Transmitted
• SARS, 2003
COVID-19
• MERS, 2012 Air Transmitted as of 14 Feb 2021
• Coronavirus, 2019
 Some germs becomes drug resistant -
incredibly difficult to eradicate biologically
 Recurring seasonal flu puts heavy burden
on the medical system
 Conventional technology (such as purging, filters, Ultra
Violet light, ionizer and PCO) are known to be ineffective
Seasonal Flu
Air Transmitted 2
Air Transmission of COVID-19
Aerosol ≤ 5µm diameter

3: Airborne Travel > 1m

Respiratory droplets
> 5µm diameter

Infected Cross-Infected

Modified from Harrison et al. 2020

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.it.2020.10.004

1. Contact transmission
Touching your eyes, ears or nose with contaminated hands
2. Droplet transmission
Through large respiratory droplets of an infectious person in close proximity
3. Aerosol transmission
Through inhalation of infectious particles in contaminated air spread over long distances
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 Nuclear Power
from Fission to Fusion
Two Forms of Nuclear Energy
Fission Fusion

Maximum Stability
(Iron - 56Fe)
Binding Energy per Nucleon

http://encarta.msn.com

 Fission of 1 kg 235U
 ~23x106 kWh

 D-T fusion to 1 kg helium

 ~120x106 kWh
 Combustion of 1 kg coal
Mass Number A  ~10 kWh
http://www.euronuclear.org/info/encyclopedia/n/nuclearenergy.htm

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Fission Power

Mature technology but still faces

three challenges:

 Safety: Possibility of reactor core meltdowns following

emergency shutdowns
(mitigated by Gen.III and Gen.IV reactors)
 Sustainability: Necessity to breed more radioactive fuel
(mitigated by Gen.IV reactors)
 Waste Management: Accumulation of long lived nuclear
waste requiring storage for as long as 100,000 years
(mitigated by Gen.IV reactors)
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Nuclear Fusion & Plasma
Conditions for fusion reactions:
 hot enough (temperature)
 in sufficient number (density) Gravity Inertia Magnetic
 well contained (confinement time)
Magnetic Confinement: ITER
 Tokamak  Fusion Power = 500MW
ITER
 Ti = 8 KeV
 ne = 1020 m-3
 tE = 3.7 s

Source: www.fusionscience.org/technical/MWslides/HowDFW.pd 7
 Progress of Fusion Development
• 1932 - 1958 T3 Tokamak achieved the first high
• Fusion discovered temperature (107 oC) plasma in 1968
• Lawson criteria (ntE ~ 1021 s/m3)
•  Confinement or compression essential
• 1958
• Fusion declassified
• international collaboration & Many labs created
• 1968 - 1990
• Tokamak breakthrough; global stability
• 1990 – 2000+
• Scaling laws
• Fusion for real
•  >10MW; 5x1018 neutrons; duration >>minutes
• 2000 to present
• Start of a new era  ITER, DEMO …
Modified from J Jacquinot, Geneva FEC 2008 8
Fusion Power Development
DEMO: 2050?
Fusion Triple Product
n (1021 m-3) t(s) T(keV)

ITER: 2022 - 2040

First Plasma: 2025
Triple Product
doubles every
1.8 Years

+
800 m3 ~ 1000 - 3500 m3
JT60-SA JET ~ 80 m3 ~ 500 MWth ~ 2000 - 4000 MWth
•Super conductors D/T ~16 MWth
•Steady state operation Q = Pfusion/Pheat = 10 Q ~ 30

+ many other facilities

Modified from J Jacquinot, Geneva FEC 2008 9
Fusion Power: Advantages

 Practically inexhaustible fuel resource (D or Li).

 Wastes much easier managed, much less

problematic than actinides and long-lived
fission products.
ITER
 Inherently safe - with no criticality risks. Contains minimal (100-1000g)
fuel or radioactive inventory at any instant. Negligible after heat.

 No major proliferation concern - fusion has no fissile fuel cycle and no

involvement with any actinides, hence inspections are technically easy.
Breakout threat minimized by zero inventory.

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Plasma Technology
Introduction
What is Plasma?
Plasma: ionized gas
 4th state of matter: hotter than gases
Solid → Liquid → Gas → Plasma
 Contains positive ions, negative electrons, and
neutral particles
 Most abundant state of matter in the universe:
found in stars, fluorescent light bulbs!

Anode Low Pressure Gas Cathode

P L A S M A
Source: www.plasma.org

Energy Unit: 1 eV = 1.16 x 104 K High Voltage

Room temperature  300K  0.026 eV
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Plasma:
The Most Abundant State of Matter
 Conducts electricity
 2 energy channels:
Electrons, ions (nucleus with mass)
 Key parameters:
Temperature, Density
 Key characteristics:
Quasi-neutrality, Shielding

Industrial Applications
• Plasma arc welding
• Gasification, Incineration
• Plasma etching
• Light generation
• Plasma display panel
• Plasma sterilization … Air disinfection
Source: www.plasma.org

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Plasma for Industrial Applications
Ionization and Breakdown
Components in a Partially Ionized Plasma (e.g. a filament)
Electrons
+ve Ions
-ve Ions
Radicals
Neutrals
cathode electric field anode

Paschen law for breakdown:

Breakdown Voltage = Function of (pd) Plasma Processing
where p=pressure, d=gap distance
• Direction actions from
electrons & +ve ions
Breakdown occurs when the local electric field is sufficiently large for
electrons to acquire enough energy to compensate the energy losses • Indirection actions from
due to collisions, excitation, etc. electron excitation & radicals
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UV Germicidal Application
Indirect, Secondary Application of Plasma
Germicidal UV Tube
Effectiveness Molybdenum Quartz • Uses the electron
Electric Foil Lamp Body
Cable channel energy
• Electron excitation to
High emit photon, e.g.
Low Pressure excitation of mercury
Pressure UV Lamp End-Fitting Tungsten Electrode atom to emit UV
UV Lamp

Air Disinfection Example

(800 CFM air flow for 100 m2 room at ACH=5)
http://www.americanairandwater.com/lamps.htm
Minimum UV Dosage 20,000 µWs/cm²
UV Germicidal Capability UV Intensity per Tube 100 µW/cm² @1m
(decreases with distance) 1,000 µW/cm² @0.1m
 90% Disinfection UV Dosage
• Species dependent, wide range: Air-duct Cross Section 0.4m x 0.4m
• 2,000 ~ 200,000 µWs/cm² Air Speed 2.4m/s
 UV Dosage for Water Disinfection UV Tube Length 0.46m
• 20,000 µWs/cm² (NWRI, USA) Residence Time 0.19s
• 40,000 µWs/cm² (NSF 55 Class A) # of Tubes Required 100 15
Plasma Surface Sanitization Concepts
How to kill germs on a surface?
Plasma is created by applying a high voltage to a pair of
electrodes with plasma transferred to the surface Transferred Arc

Non-Transfer Arc
One of the electrodes (anode)
is external, i.e., the arc has
transferred to the external
anode constituted by an
electrically conductive material.

Electrodes do not participate

in the processing and have
the sole function of plasma
generation.

G. Bonizzoni and E. Vassallo, ‘Plasma physics and technology; industrial applications’, Vacuum 64 (2002) 327-336.
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Medical Sterilization Application
Hydrogen Peroxide Low Pressure Plasma
Surface Sanitization of
medical equipment
“Disinfection inside a Fluorescent Tube”

 Hydrogen Peroxide Plasma in the form of Low-Pressure

Glow Discharges
 Chamber pressure operates at < 1 mmHg
 A radio-frequency plasma discharge is generated to
produce reactive species that include free radicals for
sterilization
 Medical devices are sterilized in a chamber filled with
hydrogen peroxide plasma (for surface sanitization)
Johnson & Johnson
ASP Sterrad 50

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Plasma Air Sanitization Technology
How to kill germs in air ?
Electrical Generation of Plasma

Plasma

 A high voltage is applied to the electrodes to create plasma

 Thousands of tiny lightening created inside the plasma device destroy Intense ionized gas field
airborne microbes and VOCs shatters the pathogenic
microbes & VOC
 Plasma stays inside the device, cannot escape into the living environment
 Can achieve 99% disinfection efficacy in <0.1 seconds of plasma treatment
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What is a True Plasma Technology?
True Plasma sanitization
Pathogen Clean Air
 Plascide plasma comprises of energetic charged
particles powerful enough to breakdown
contaminants.
 Plasma is sustained by electric field created
within the device. The energetic charged
particles quickly recombine back to normal air Intense ionized gas field with high energy plasma
once left the device and therefore cannot to shatter the pathogenic microbes & VOC
disperse into the living environment.
Corona ionizer

 Other Ionic (plasma look-alike) technology has

Ionization occurs
low energy charged particles too weak (<0.1eV)
near electrode with
to break down contaminants. The fact that low energy ions
these ions can disperse into the living space is
a reflection of their low energy level.

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Plasma Air Sterilization
Plasma technology vs Ionic Technology
 Plasma comprises of energetic charged particles Energy
powerful enough to breakdown contaminants. Organic bond ~ 0.1 to few eV
 Contaminants can also be broken down via secondary disassociation
processes such electron excitation, UV & radicals. Plasma 10-20 eV

Air Ions ( Plasma) UV (254 nm) 4.9 eV

 Natural air ions (+ & -) in free air from radiation. Air Ion 0.025 eV
 Some ‘ionizer devices’ can generate air ions (+ & -).
 Do not possess the collective behaviour to be plasma.
 Do not have enough energy to destroy contaminants.

Plasma vs Ionic
Direct High Energy vs Indirect Low Energy
Plasma-Direct Sterilization
1. Plasma: de-contamination within the plasma device directly

2. Ionic: de-contamination external to the ionic device (via Secondary Ionic

indirect secondary process) Radical Sterilization
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Plasma Air Sanitization Technology
Air Sanitization Applications
- Sanitize What Other Can’t

 True plasma technology works with intense micro-

lightning ionized gas field that sterilizes pathogens
such as H3N2 influenza, MRSA and neutralizes
toxic chemicals like formaldehyde.

 Electrocution action is not limited to any specific

size or type of pathogens or chemicals and can
therefore sanitize known and mutated pathogens.

 Sanitization occurs within the plasma reactor

releasing no ions/plasma nor harmful ozone into
the living space.

• Sanitize air with a speed many times faster than other technology
• Filter-less requiring no replacement of expensive filters
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Plasma Disinfection
Microbiological Studies
Microorganisms Tested
Virus Yeast • True plasma technology works with intense micro-
lightning ionized field (Electrocution action) is not
Influenza virus
Rhodotorula sp. limited to any specific size or type of pathogens or
(H3N2)
chemicals and can therefore sanitize known and
Fungi Bacteria mutated pathogens.
Aspergillus
versicolor
Escherichia coli • Sanitization occurs within the ionized field, releasing no
ions/plasma nor harmful ozone into the living space.
Cladosporium Legionella pneumophila
cladosporioides
• Handle a wide range of microbes including bacteria,
Micrococcus luteus fungi and virus
Mycobacterium
tuberculosis • Kill microbes with over 95% efficacy within a Treatment
Penicillium
corylophilum
Time < 0.1 s
Pseudomonas
aeruginosa • Efficacy dependent on plasma power. Typical power
Staphylococcus aureus, consumption  0.18 W per m3/hr air flow
Stachybotrys MRSA (cf. UV ~ 2.4W per m3/hr )
sp.
Staphylococcus sp.
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 Validated & Verified Performance
LMS Technologies （US renowned Laboratory） Centre for Disease
Inactivate 95% of MS2 (COVID-19
Control (China)
surrogate virus) in a single pass
under 0.1 second Meeting hospital air sanitation
requirements, Technical
SGS （Global Recognized Verification Company） Standard for Disinfection, China
Certified effective against air
contaminants
‒ Bacteria (>97%)
Guang Zhou Institute of
‒ VOC (>72%)
Microbiology
University of Hong Kong Meeting China's CQC standards
City University of Hong Kong for air sterilization and
Plascide micro-lightning electrocution is hazardous substances release
effective on all pathogens:
‒ Bacteria (>99%)
‒ Virus (e.g. H3N2)
‒ Virus(>90%)
‒ Bacteria (e.g. MRSA, TB, legionella)
‒ Ozone (<50ppb)
‒ Fungi (e.g. stachybotrys sp.)
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2-Years Case Study in Elderly Home
Sin Tin Toa Home for The Aged

During flu seasons

• Infection rate reduced 60%
• No more quarantine measures • Residence: 60
• Floor area : 14000 sq. ft.

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Test Method: Performance Testing

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Performance Testing
Sanitization Efficacy & Sanitization Rate
Multi-Pass Single Pass
Typical in most other tests Typical in dynamic tests
How large is the room?
Presence of continuous
How long does it take to
contaminant source
achieve >90% disinfection?

Static: Contaminants injected at beginning Dynamic: Continuous contaminant Injection

Air Flow
Treatment
Device Treatment
Device
Contaminant Air
Source Sampler
Air Sampler

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The Measure of Sanitization Speed
Sanitization Rate – an indicator of performance
 Static Test with pre-loaded contaminants (Multi-pass)
𝜕𝑛 Treatment
= −𝛼𝑛 ⇒𝑛=𝑛 𝑒 Device
𝜕𝑡
Sanitization rate is 𝑎 = − ln( 𝑛/𝑛 )/Δ𝑡

where Δ𝑡 is the treatment time Air Sampler

 Dynamic Test with continuous contaminant injection (Single-pass)

𝑑𝑛 𝜕𝑛 Air Flow
= −𝛼𝑛 + 𝑣 ⋅ ∇𝑛 = −𝛼𝑛
𝑑𝑡 𝜕𝑡 Treatment
For a steady 1-dimensional flow
Device
𝜕𝑛 Contaminant Air
v = −𝛼𝑛 ⇒𝑛=𝑛 𝑒 / Source Sampler
𝜕𝑥
Sanitization rate is 𝑎 = − ln( 𝑛/𝑛 )v/Δ𝑥 = − ln( 𝑛/𝑛 )/Δ𝑡

where Δ𝑡 = Δ𝑥/v is the residence or treatment time

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Single Pass Dynamic Bench Test
Test setup at
City University of Hong Kong

Nebulizer
Plascide Reactor
Upstream Sampling
Downstream Sampling

Test Plascide
Path Reactor

Control Dynamic Air Test – provides reliable

Nebulizer Path measure of Sanitization Rate

Sampler
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Real-Life Test in a Male Toilet
with continuous source of bacteria
Sanitizer OFF ON 15 min ON 30 min

Near outlet
Test configuration and locations
(Sampler A)
of the air samplers
Near Source
(Sampler B)

500
Near air outlet of air purifier
400 Near source of airborne bacteria

300 Injection
3
CFU/m

Plasma On from
flushing
200
Plasma
100 Off

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Time (min.)
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Disinfection Efficacy Rate Comparison
Plasma vs UV
Treatment Treatment time Sanitization Rate
Technology (for > 95% efficacy)  (s-1)
UV 10 minutes 0.008
Plasma 20 ms 230
𝛼
Ratio of Sanitization Rates: 𝛼
= 3 ⋅ 10

Why the differences?

1. Energy Level
EUV = 3.5eV ( = 365 nm)
= 5.0eV ( = 254 nm)
= 8.5eV ( = 185 nm)
Eplasma = 10 ~ 20 eV
2. Generation Scale 3. Working Pressure
UV: line source UV: low pressure (~1 torr)
Plasma: volume source Plasma: atmospheric

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LCC Analysis (Materials & Power only)
- Comparison Summary
Basis: A room of 100 m2 with 0.38 m3/s (800 CFM), 5 ACH
a
Plascide HEPA UV
b
System Cost (Material) $32,400 $18,600 $15,000
Consumable Cost (5 Years) -- $74,400 $60,000
c
Power Consumption (W) 240 300 3,000
5-Year Consumption (8 hrs/day) kWh 3,500 4,380 10,950
Cost of power at $1.2/kWh $4,200 $5,300 $13,100
5-Years Life Cycle Cost $36,600 $98,300 $88,100
5-Years Life Cycle Cost Ratio Base ~2.5 times ~2.5 times

Nota a: Dosage set at 5,000 µWs/cm² . This is very low compared with minimum requirement
on dosage for water disinfection, NWRI, USA
Note b: Ignoring fan upgrade cost to provide the extra static pressure required for HEPA filter
Note c: Estimated extra fan power to provide additional 250 Pa
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Limitations of Other Technology
Limitations of Conventional Technology
- Filter

 HEPA filters can trap larger

germs and particulates but not
virus and tiny aerosols.
 Trapping has no sanitation effect.
 Germ filled filters need to be
disposed of carefully and
replacement is financial costly
over the long run.
A used filter loaded with living
pathogens is a time bomb
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 Limitations of Conventional Technology
- Ultra Violet (UV)

 Ultra violet (UV) light requires long

irradiation on germs that is impractical
for air disinfection.

 Diminishing intensity over distance

 Shadowing effect (e.g. dust on surface)
render UV disinfection useless
 Plascide sterilization efficiency is over
100 times faster Typical UV irradiation duration for surgical equipment
is over 2 hours – too slow for air disinfection

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Limitations of Conventional Technology
- Ionizer

 Ionic technology (ion generator, Ionizer) works by

electrically charging air molecules and particulates

 They do not destroy germs nor VOCs

 The charges can facilitate airborne particles to adhere to

any surfaces thereby taking them out of the air temporarily

 The particulates can return to air again

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 Limitations of Conventional Technology
- PCO, PECO

 Photo-Catalyst Oxidation (PCO) or

Photoelectrochemical oxidation (PECO) use
UV to activate a catalytic coating to generate UV light
radicals which can inactivate some germs
and VOCs in contact.
 Requires germs be close to the coating
surface to be effective dust settlement
Catalytic Coating
 The efficiency is low because not all germs
and VOCs will be within range of the catalyst Service disinfection degraded by dust buildup

 Efficacy is severely degraded by dust buildup

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Conventional Technology Limitations
– Ozone
O3
 Ozone is not effective unless the
concentration is at a health hazardous level
of greater than 3,000 ppb (According to
Environmental Protection Department Ozone Tube
guidelines, the threshold limit of ozone is
around 50 ppb).
 It can only kill airborne microbes efficiently
at the cost of human health.
 Also, ozone has very low or nil effect on
reducing VOCs.
Ozone Plate

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Conventional Technology Limitations
– ESP
 ESP (Electrostatic Precipitator) relies on inducing electrostatic charge
on passing air particulates to assist settlement.
 The electrostatic charges can facilitate airborne particles to adhere to
any surfaces thereby taking them out of the air temporarily but they do
not destroy germs nor VOCs.

Dust ESP HEPA

Electrostatic dipole moment
induced on air particulates by the
externally applied electric field

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Fusion Plasma Technology for Air Sanitization
- Preventing COVID-19 Infection
Fusion
 Fusion plasma technology is advancing and the
contribution of nuclear fusion to power
generation is still some years away.
 Plasma technology is gaining grounds in
industrial applications and has been successfully
applied to destroy microbes and neutralize VOCs.
 Plasma can sterilize bacteria, fungi, and virus
with an efficacy of over 99% within a treatment
time of less than a second.

Air & Surface

Sterilization

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