Alcohol rub vs Far-UVC

Gel

A consumable chemical. Pumped, rubbed for 20 to 30 seconds, refilled, shipped and stored as a flammable.

Light

A fixed light source. Nothing applied to the skin, nothing to refill.

01Activity

What each method inactivates.

Alcohol works well on flu, COVID and common bacteria. It does little against norovirus and C. difficile spores, two of the hardest problems in hospitals. Far-UVC light reaches both.

GermAlcohol rubLifelight, 222 nm
Flu and COVIDEnveloped viruses: influenza, coronaviruses, RSVWorksBreaks the virus's outer coat.Works90% of airborne flu virus inactivated at a very low dose.0.11 mJ/cm², H1N1 [4]
Common bacteriaIncluding MRSA, VRE, CREWorksStrong results in standard hand tests.3.9–4.4 log, EN 1500 [12]Works, dose matters99.9% on surfaces. Skin folds shield some bacteria, so results on hands depend on the dose.3 log on surfaces at 18–28 mJ/cm²; 1 log on hands at 23 mJ/cm² [7][8]
NorovirusThe stomach bug; also rhinovirusWeakCDC advises soap and water instead.Works99.96% of a norovirus stand-in inactivated on surfaces.3.4 log at 9.3 mJ/cm² [5]
C. difficile sporesA leading cause of hospital infectionDoes not workSpores survive, and 30% still pass on by handshake after use.[14]WorksInactivates spores at a high enough dose, and more efficiently than older 254 nm UV.[9][10]

Small print under each result gives the measured figure for specialists. Bracketed numbers refer to the references.

02In use

Alcohol works when it is used properly. It rarely is.

Lab results assume the right amount of gel, rubbed over every surface until dry. On the ward, people use about a third of the gel for about a third of the time, and miss the thumbs, fingertips and backs of the hands. With 1.5 mL, 6–7% of the hand stays uncovered [17].

 What alcohol needsWhat happensWith Lifelight
Rubbing time20–30 s, rubbed until dryAbout 8 s in intensive care [15]None. Hold hands in place for seconds.
Amount of gelAbout 3 mL to cover both handsAbout 1 mL per use, on average [16]None. The unit sets the dose.
CoverageEvery surface of both hands9.5% of clinicians covered every area. Thumbs were fully covered 37% of the time [18]No rubbing technique to get right.

Lifelight removes the steps people skip: there is no gel to measure, no technique to follow and nothing to dry. Results on hands still depend on intensity, exposure time and how the hands are held, which the unit is designed around. Bracketed numbers refer to the references.

03Cost

$10,950 of gel. Or $2.20 of light.

What one dispenser costs to run for a year at 200 uses a day, against one Lifelight unit. Set your own numbers below. Operating cost only; hardware is not included.

50
200
3.0 mL
$50
Operating costover 5 years
Alcohol rub$07 hand cleans per $1 · 10,950 L of gel a year
Lifelight$032,800 hand cleans per $1
Difference per use4,900×lower operating cost
Cumulative operating cost · 12 months
Alcohol rubLifelight

Gel carbon: 0.9 g CO₂e per 3 mL use (Br J Anaesth 2023), scaled to volume. Lifelight electricity is modeled at 30 W for 10 seconds per use, based on two 12 W filtered 222 nm lamp modules, plus 1 W standby, at $0.15/kWh and 0.37 kg CO₂e/kWh, about 0.08 g CO₂e per use at 200 uses a day. Default gel cost is Lifelight's estimate of $0.15 per 3 mL use, about $50 a liter including product, packaging, handling and refill labor. Set your own figure.

04Carbon

The footprint is in the product.

In a life cycle assessment of hand hygiene, the active ingredient accounted for 83% of the climate impact of ethanol sanitizer. Light removes the product from the equation.

0.9g

CO₂e per 3 mL alcohol rub use.

Br J Anaesth 2023
0.08g

CO₂e per Lifelight use, electricity including standby.

Derived · method above
83%

of ethanol sanitizer's climate impact comes from the alcohol itself.

Duane et al., Environ Sci Pollut Res 2022
Worked example300-bed hospital

About 3,700 L of hand rub and 1.1 t CO₂e a year, from product alone.

Patient-days at 85% occupancy
93,075
Hand rub use, hospital-wide
39.9 L / 1,000 patient-days
Annual volume
3,714 L
Carbon at 0.3 g CO₂e / mL
1.1 t CO₂e

Consumption rate from 69 Catalan hospitals, 2018–2022 (Enferm Infecc Microbiol Clin 2025). ICUs use far more: the European ICU average is 98 L per 1,000 patient-days (ECDC).

05Day to day

Everything else that changes.

What changes for staff, facilities and the budget once gel comes off the wall. Germ-by-germ results are in section 01. Lifelight figures are company specifications unless cited.

 Alcohol rubLifelight
Works without the right techniqueNo. Depends on dose, time and coverageYes. The unit sets dose and time
Clean in secondsNo. 20–30 s rub until dryYes. Seconds at the unit
Nothing left on the skinNo. Alcohol and emollients; dry skin with frequent useYes. No residue
No refillsNo. 146–219 L a year per dispenserYes. None
Non-flammableNo. Flammable liquid; storage limits applyYes. Non-flammable, mercury-free
Low carbon per useNo. About 0.9 g CO₂eYes. About 0.08 g CO₂e
Low running costNo. About $0.15 a useYes. About $0.00003 a use