A Spray that Prevents the Surfaces from Coronavirus for 90 Days

One of the best approaches to fight against the spread of the COVID-19 is to sanitize the surfaces that are highly contacted. Around the globe, the disinfection of frequently used places including mosques, markets, kindergartens, lift buttons, handrails, buildings of the state capital, and public roads can help to kill germs and finish COVID-19 from the whole world.

Professor Joseph Kwan  is a researcher who shares that; “These places are frequently touched, and, at the same time, serve as a very effective medium for the transmission of diseases.”

The coronavirus has spread to several countries since it emerged in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. More than two million people have been infected with COVID-19 and more than 0.2 million deaths have happened around the whole world.

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Most of the COVID-19 cases are mild and need no treatment but it spreads rapidly. The spread of COVID-19 can be prevented by keeping good hygiene, washing hands for at least twenty seconds, covering the nose and mouth while coughing, and by keeping a social distance.

These measures work because tiny droplets from sneezing and coughing of COVID-19 infected persons can spread the virus as far as three to six feet or one to two meters.

 Scientists have developed an antiviral coating that can protect surfaces from coronavirus for ninety days. 

The researchers at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) say that the coating is known as MAP-1 which has been developed in ten years and can be sprayed on the frequently used public surfaces like lift buttons, and handrails to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

An adjunct professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Joseph Kwan says,

“These places are frequently touched, and, at the same time, serve as a very effective medium for the transmission of diseases,”

The spray-on coating is made from several disinfectants containing nano-capsules which is effective against viruses, bacteria, and spores even after it has dried.

The efficacy of MAP-1 is expanded by heat-sensitive polymers that encapsulate and release disinfectants on human contact as compared to commonly used disinfectants like alcohol or bleach. Researchers say that this antiviral coating is non-toxic and safe for skin and environment.

MAP-1 was approved for mass consumer and official use two months before after testing it at the care home and a Hong Kong hospital. This antiviral coating will be sold in Hong Kong shops from next month. It has also been sprayed around many homes of low-income families in the city. 

An infection-prevention epidemiologist, Saskia Popescu says,

“I would rather see better efforts to make sure people are disinfecting emergency rooms and high-touch surfaces in hospitals and schools more than I would want to see bleach being sprayed on streets.”

A mother-of-two living in a 110sq ft “coffin” home, Law Ha-yu, whose home is recently sprayed for no cost says, “I feel like it has strengthened our protection against the virus.” 

Researchers say that schools, Shopping malls, and many sports facilities are using this antiviral coating in Hong Kong.

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It costs £2,050-£5,130 to spray a school building depending on its size. Germanic, a unit of the university’s industrial partner, Chiaphua Industries Ltd has planned to introduce 50 ml and 200 ml versions for domestic use with costs going from £70-£25.

There is a need to know how long the virus can survive in the air in normal conditions. Researchers say that if most frequently used public surfaces are disinfected, the spread of COVID-19 can be prevented.