March 1, 2021
Asahi Kasei Corp.

Asahi Kasei announces that the UV Streamer Air Purifier scheduled to be launched in Japan by Daikin Industries, Ltd. (Daikin) on April 26, 2021, will be equipped with Klaran™ high-performance UVC LEDs for disinfection by Crystal IS, Inc. (CIS), an Asahi Kasei company.

About Klaran™ UVC LEDs

Made using the Asahi Kasei Group’s leading single-crystal aluminum nitride (AlN) substrates and thin-film crystal growth technologies, Klaran™ achieves the highest output in the 260–270 nm wavelength range, which is most effective for inactivation of bacteria and viruses. In October 2020, joint research by CIS and the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories of Boston University confirmed that Klaran™ UVC LEDs can effectively inactivate SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.¹ Since then, Klaran™ has been adopted as a coronavirus disinfection solution in a growing number of fields and applications worldwide.

About Daikin UV Streamer Air Purifier

With the COVID-19 pandemic, air purifiers have been rapidly and widely installed in various educational facilities such as nurseries, schools, and prep schools, as well as medical institutions and offices in addition to residences. Demand for air purification is expected to further increase with rising concern regarding air quality in windowless rooms of shops and clinics as well as in spaces used by many people such as shared offices whose use has risen with the spread of remote working.

Through the combination of an “antibacterial HEPA filter” having an antimicrobial agent added to the conventional electrostatic HEPA filter, Daikin’s original “Streamer” for powerful decomposition of viruses and bacteria trapped by the filter, and CIS’s Klaran™ high-performance UVC LEDs with confirmed virus and bacteria inactivation, the UV Streamer Air Purifier to be launched by Daikin has been verified to remove more than 99% of viruses in 30 minutes and to remove bacteria 10 times faster than conventional Daikin Streamer series air purifiers.

Moving forward

Being small and highly adaptable while achieving the highest output in the most effective wavelength range for disinfection, Klaran™ UVC LEDs are expected to be incorporated in various devices and equipment in addition to the conventional use for water sterilization. The Asahi Kasei Group will continue to contribute to life and living by providing solutions to various social issues including COVID-19 through technological development in the UV disinfection market.

• ¹Asahi Kasei Press Release on October 13, 2020
  https://www.asahi-kasei.com/news/2020/e201013_1.html

Corporate profile of Crystal IS, Inc.
Headquarters: New York, USA
President and CEO: Larry Felton
Website: https://www.klaran.com/

Corporate profile of Daikin Industries, Ltd.
Headquarters: Osaka, Japan
President and CEO: Masanori Togawa
Website: https://www.daikin.com/

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