Practical considerations for Ultraviolet-C radiation mediated decontamination of N95 respirator against SARS-CoV-2 virus

Abstract

Decontaminating N95 respirators for reuse could mitigate shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the United States Center for Disease Control has identified Ultraviolet-C irradiation as one of the most promising methods for N95 decontamination, very few studies have evaluated the efficacy of Ultraviolet-C for SARS-CoV-2 inactivation. In addition, most decontamination studies are performed using mask coupons that do not recapitulate the complexity of whole masks. We sought to directly evaluate the efficacy of Ultraviolet-C mediated inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 on N95 respirators. To that end we created a portable UV-C light-emitting diode disinfection chamber and tested decontamination of SARS-CoV-2 at different sites on two models of N95 respirator. We found that decontamination efficacy depends on mask model, material and location of the contamination on the mask. Our results emphasize the need for caution when interpreting efficacy data of UV-C decontamination methods.