TRLUP – Smart Integrated System for Air Disinfection

Airborne viruses spread most readily in closed rooms where people share the same air. The usual defence is to crank up the ventilation system, so more outdoor air dilutes the germs. Unfortunately, higher airflow drives up energy bills and works against carbon-reduction targets. Installing Far-UVC lamps (222 nm) is another promising option because this light can kill viruses in real time without chemicals. We propose an integrated control platform that turns Far-UVC into a smart, energy-aware clean-air layer. Ceiling-mounted krypton-chloride lamps are paired with inexpensive sensors that track UV intensity, room-temperature, and CO2 and, Ozone concentrations. A reinforcement-learning algorithm continuously reads those sensors, simulates how air and light operate the room, and adjusts lamp brightness and airflow in real time. The goal is simple: deliver the germ-killing dose only where and when it is needed, never exceed safe exposure limits, and dial back ventilation whenever the lamps can shoulder more of the disinfection load. Making this work draws on four skill sets—UV physics to model light, indoor fluid mechanics to map airflow, hands-on electronics to prototype sensor networks, and machine-learning control to teach the system how to balance health protection with energy savings automatically.

Faculty Supervisor:

Tyler Charlebois

Student:

Partner:

DMZ Ventures Inc

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

Humber Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning

Program: