Solar Spectrum Characterization, Impact on Human Health and Mitigation Using Innovative Materials

Solar radiation, depending on the degree of exposure, is a key factor on the manufacturing of vitamin-D, especially the UVB portion of light (290-320 nm). However, excessive exposure to solar UV-B irradiance has detrimental effects to human health, since it is a genotoxic stressor, and cause unrepairable DNA damage, skin cancer etc. Surprisingly, Vitamin-D deficiency and metabolic disorders are common in Middle Eastern countries (especially Qatar) and have been linked to inadequate exposure to sunlight, regardless of the more than 9-hours average sunshine per year. Beyond the biological complexity of the above phenomena other environmental factors, as well, have a significant impact.

Efforts in this study focus on the quantification of the threshold exposure time needed in Qatar to produce vitamin-D. In other words, to create a model relating the threshold UV exposure time and the production of vitamin-D based on literature and local data. To achieve this, we assembled an experimental setup to characterize solar irradiance and spectral composition (intensity per wavelength). Measurements collected from a pyranometer and spectrometer were combined to obtain graphs of the energy and wavelength of spectrum throughout the day. In parallel, by conducting a literature review of the implications of UV irradiation, a list of different biomarkers was identified as causing significant health impacts, such as cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers (CPD) and 8-oxo-dG. Here, we present the preliminary results of our work and the python-model we developed to utilize local atmospheric data (through AERONET), our measurements, and a literature Vitamin-D synthesis model.