As it turns out, it seems light can kill COVID — at least, that is what one Roger Williams University professor aims to confirm over the course of the next year.

Assistant Professor of Public Health P. Jacob Bueno de Mesquita and the students in his Human Health and Harmony Lab will be testing the effectiveness of Far-UVC technology on reducing viral transmission and respiratory infections. With the help of a grant from the Rhode Island IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (via the National Institutes of Health), far-UVC devices — resembling unobtrusive light bulls — have been installed in a classroom as well as a health services exam room.

Visium technology was developed by Lit Thinking, a private tech firm with expertise in building technology and science. Lit Thinking’s state-of-the-art proprietary software and innovative technology uses Far-UVC, a human safe wavelength of light that continuously deactivates pathogens, viruses and other airborne illnesses (visit www.litthinking.com for a deeper dive).

RWU is one of the first universities to study the effect of Visium technology, and the students will have an important role researching its effectiveness over the next year, as Bueno de Mesquita will incorporate the project into the curriculum of his course “Systems of Human Health and Disease.” At the end of the year, the class will report their findings about the effectiveness of the technology.

Bueno de Mesquita is optimistic that it will be proven effective. The typical-sized classroom, holding about 25 students, would have four UVC units installed in the ceiling, capable of cleaning the air at the equivalent of about 40 air changes (nearly complete replacement) per day.

The units retail at about $2,000 each, but bulk pricing would result in savings of about 20 percent. The same amount of clean air in that size space with a traditional ventilation system costs about $11,500 per year, compared to $8,000 for the life of the units.

“There’s more to that cost-benefit,” said Bueno de Mesquita. “Even if we can’t knock down all the pathogens we can lower the dose and reduce the chance of disease, so fewer people get sick.

“We are thrilled to see Far-UVC technology make its debut in a higher educational setting,” said John Rajchert, CEO of Lit Thinking, “and we look forward to the positive impact it will have on the campus community.”