UV rays - today, a highly recognized and readily available technology used for water disinfection, but also, for example, air purification. This technology has become almost a standard in some countries, and many households are equipped with devices emitting UV rays, typically for water disinfection. Many municipalities and cities in the West, such as in Switzerland, have water treatment stations equipped with huge bactericidal UV lamps. When did UV technology develop?
✅UV rays were discovered as early as the Napoleonic Wars, specifically in 1801. The discovery was made almost simultaneously by two scientists, essentially independently of each other. They were the German Johann Ritter (died 1810) and the British William Wollaston (died 1828). However, it was a long road to utilizing UV rays for sterilization. Firstly, it was necessary to wait until it became widely accepted among scientists that microorganisms, microbes, algae, etc., contribute to diseases (which was not obvious everywhere). Only then did scientists recognize the need for water disinfection or broader sterilization.
Throughout the 19th century, scientists in various countries, mostly Western ones, conducted various studies that demonstrated the bactericidal effects of UV rays. For instance, in 1903, the Danish scientist Niels Finsen received the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his research on the effect of ultraviolet radiation, or UV, on bacteria causing skin diseases. Unfortunately, he did not continue his research for long, as he passed away the following year. Units dedicated to this subject were driving the development of knowledge about UV rays at that time.
☑️ The image depicts a likeness of Niels Finsen, an Icelandic-Danish physician and Nobel laureate from 1903 (the same year Marie Sklodowska-Curie received the Nobel Prize in Physics). Without the work of this individual, who investigated the potential bactericidal effects of UV rays, this technology might not have developed to the extent it has today. / The image is in the public domain.
The activities of 19th-century scientists paved the way for water disinfection.
✅ The first UV water sterilizer resembling somewhat today's models was constructed in 1910 in Marseille, France. However, it was very imperfect; the lamp quickly burned out, making it unsuitable for widespread use or commercial distribution. Shortly thereafter, in 1916, a similar solution of UV water filter appeared in the USA. This sterilizer, built in Kentucky, was also far from perfect, and there was no talk of its widespread use.
For UV water disinfection, it was necessary to wait, especially since the two world wars in the 20th century led various governments to be less interested in funding research outside the scope of military technology. Nonetheless, the private sector worked on UV utilization technology, resulting in the first attempts at commercial use of this technology. Therefore, during the interwar period, the first patents appeared, albeit more or less successful.
✅ In 1930, for the first time in the USA, UV lamps for water appeared in commercial circulation, primarily for use in hospitals. These were industrial-type UV lamps, not typically intended for single-family homes.
In the same year, also in the United States, a highly significant scientific work was published, authored by F.L. Gates, which had a tremendous influence on the development of the technology. Overall, during that time, UV sterilizers available for sale did not become a market hit and did not make a splash until the post-World War II era of peace.
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