Kate Fowler

Abstract:

Many kinds of different bacteria can be harmful and cause diseases to the human body. Many people die each year because they don't have access to fresh water or clean conditions. They may be exposed to harmful bacteria and need a fast efficient way of killing them at an affordable price point. Previous studies have shown that UV light works as a disinfectant and some kinds of UV light can even kill bacteria due to the radiation the light gives off. My objective was to see if inexpensive ultraviolet (UV) flashlights were capable of stopping the growth of non-pathogenic bacteria, (Enterobacter Cloacae Culture) or even just have an effect on the bacteria. My hypothesis was the UV light would have some effect on, or get rid of the bacteria if the UV lights were used long enough. I researched this by performing an experiment. I inoculated nutrient broth with the bacteria, treated it under the UV flashlights, and then grew it in an incubator. My data suggests that low quality UV flashlights aren't capable of having any effect on non-pathogenic bacteria. I think that this is because the radiation from the flashlights wasn't high enough, and because we weren't capable of using the flashlights for an exceedingly long enough amount of time.