What is cold plasma technology and why is it so vital to post-pandemic recovery?

September 7, 2022

As we prepare to launch our revolutionary AirLift and AirStair products this autumn, we are sharing more about the world-first use of cold plasma technology, and the role it plays in post-pandemic hygiene.

This October, OXONOX will be launching two new pioneering products that will help to restore the public’s confidence in post-pandemic hygiene. They will also play a key part in returning vital industries, such as retail, the built environment and transport infrastructure, back to full usage and ultimately back to the profits not seen since start of pandemic.

Having secured global patent rights for the world’s first use of cold plasma technology - acknowledged as the next step up in sterilisation performance, safety and cost over UV light – the OXONOX AirLift and OXONOX AirStair products will provide reassurance to the hygiene-conscious public that busy lifts and escalators are as safe as they can be, in the post-lockdown world.

These products use cold plasma technology, which has a germicidal kill rate significantly greater than traditional methods, and crucially works in seconds. The extreme kill rate from plasma means that any contamination remaining after sterilisation, in the air or on a surface, is so small that it may be many hours before the bacterial or viral load becomes a real threat to humans.

But what exactly is cold plasma technology?

Plasma is the fourth state of matter and is generated by applying energy and magnetic forces to air.

It is an 'invisible super-gas’ that is produced when natural molecules of atmospheric gases, like nitrogen, oxygen and water vapour, are subjected to an electrical arc in a controlled environment. The extremely fast moving, highly charged plasma collides with any microorganisms present, including viruses, bacteria, fungi and biofilms, destroying both the outer shell and the nucleus by its velocity in seconds.

The technology can eradicate microorganisms to a kill level known as ‘extreme’, but thanks to OXONOX’s innovative and patented technology, in a very safe, convenient and affordable way.

Cold plasma in practice

OXONOX AirLift has been designed to significantly reduce the risk of infection transmissibility in lift spaces, giving users confidence, as they continue to live restriction-free alongside COVID-19 and other emerging health threats.

AirLift is a device that fills the enclosed area with totally germ-free air at a rate of 92 cubic metres per hour - between 20 to 30 complete air changes per hour. This fresh air dilution process reduces contamination (from air droplets, coughs, sneezes etc) by over 90%, according to independent  laboratory studies, significantly reducing the risk of virus transmission. It’s like having an open window in the enclosed lift space, only better as only pathogen free air is discharged into the lift from the AirLift unit.

OXONOX AirStair is designed for escalators and moving walkways. It sits underneath the escalator and automatically and permanently sterilises handrails, with up to a 99.999% kill rate, based on laboratory results of our plasma products.

It works all day, every day, by directing plasma onto the handrail, killing germs instantly. High-energy bioactive plasma particles permeate and penetrate surfaces for complete coverage, reaching places

that disinfectants and ultraviolet light cannot. This is all achieved without the use of chemicals or consumables and prevents regrowth of bacteria and viruses for up to six hours.

Escalators and walkways are both permanently protected each revolution and in the event of a user coughing or sneezing into hands and touching a handrail, OXONOX AirStair will sterilise any microbiological load in the next revolution.

What are the benefits?

  • OXONOX offers extreme kill rates from 99.99% to 99.999%.
  • Plasma is powerful enough to kill all pathogens and sterilize the handrail in seconds each revolution with AirStair or produce ultra-cleansed air with AirLift.
  • OXONOX Plasma solutions are gas-based so can cover 100% of a target surface or area, back and front, under and over, unlike UV light.
  • OXONOX Plasma solutions work on all shapes and configurations of surfaces.
  • Emissions are simply super-cleansed oxygen so OXONOX can be used every minute o every day, even with humans present.
  • OXONOX units are compact and can be fitted under escalators or above lift compartments.
  • OXONOX units have no moving parts and only require a yearly filter change.

A solution for the post-pandemic world

As businesses struggle to regain their pre-covid footfall and profit levels, cold plasma technology offers real promise.

With OXONOX, they can reassure anxious customers that their premises are safe and hygienic.

Find out more about cold plasma and how it works here.

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