Coronavirus Technology Solutions
September 17, 2020
Putting the Charge Back into Face-Mask Filters
Substantial Rise in Coronavirus Cases in Europe
U.S. Leads the List of Most Deaths and Cases Whereas China Isn’t Even in the Top Five in Asia
Hong Kong Company Claims Air Purifier Removes 99.9% of COVD.
Nanofiber Mask and HVAC Filter Company off to Fast Start
NXTNANO Supplies Media for Masks, HVAC, Gas Turbines and Microfiltration
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Putting the Charge Back into Face-Mask Filters
Peter Tsai, inventor of the electrostatically charged filter used in face masks, emerged from retirement to help boost filter production and reuse. He was interviewed by Nature Magazine.
Peter Tsai is a materials scientist in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Credit: Carlos Jones/Oak Ridge National Laboratory
“I spent my career working with microfibers, which have a diameter of 2 micrometers or so. Tangled mats of microfibers made of polypropylene are good materials for air filters — such as those in N95 respirators. They filter at least 95% of airborne particles and meet US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health standards for medical use. In 1992, I invented a way to charge those filters by passing them through a device that produces static electricity — much like when you rub a balloon on your hair, but it’s permanent. The electrostatic charge makes the filters ten times better than uncharged filters at blocking viruses and other particles.
In this picture, I’m at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, where I recently helped convert a system for making a precursor to carbon fibres into one that can produce and charge polypropylene filters for N95 masks. We melt the polypropylene and it’s extruded, like spaghetti. The extruder produces hundreds of fibres at once, then blows hot air at them so they tangle into a web as they land on the passing conveyer belt. Then they pass through the charging device — I gave them one I had.
The laboratory, which can now produce material for 9,000 masks an hour, aims to share the technology with other labs for research, and to train companies to make the material.
I retired in 2018, but have stayed busy, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic began and face masks became so important. People began to contact me because of the N95 shortage. They wanted to sterilize the masks for reuse without damaging them or destroying the electrostatic charge. I knew that heat would not alter the charge, but that alcohol would erase it. I experimented and learnt that ozone sterilization would retain the charge, but that ozone would crack natural rubber straps.
Even though I’m mostly working for free, I feel a responsibility to help out during the pandemic. Otherwise, I would regret it for the rest of my life.”
Substantial Rise in Coronavirus Cases in Europe
A dramatic rise in new coronavirus cases in Europe has been characterized as a "wake up call" by the World Health Organization’s top official in Europe.
"We have a very serious situation unfolding before us," WHO's regional director for Europe, Hans Kluge, said Thursday in a press briefing on the epidemiological situation in the region. "Weekly cases have now exceeded those reported when the pandemic first peaked in Europe in March."
He said that, last week, the region's weekly tally exceeded 300,000 patients.
"More than half of European countries have reported a greater-than-10% increase in cases in the past two weeks. Of those, seven countries have seen newly reported cases increase more than two-fold in the same period," he added.
While lockdown measures imposed in the spring and early summer pushed the number of new cases in June to an all-time low, the number of cases in September "should serve as a wake-up call for all of us," he warned.
There have been growing concerns in Europe for a number of weeks at what is being seen as an alarming rise in coronavirus cases, with the number of new daily infections reaching record highs in some countries.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) warned Wednesday that the 14-day case notification rate (the number of newly reported cases) for the EU, European Economic Area and the U.K. "has been increasing for more than 50 days, with over half of all EU countries currently experiencing an increase in cases."
Spain, which has the highest number of confirmed coronavirus infections in Europe at 614,360, according to data collated by Johns Hopkins University (JHU), is reportedly set to announce targeted lockdowns in places where the virus is spreading rapidly, and renewed restrictions of movement on Friday.
Meanwhile in France, the number of new daily cases reported Wednesday (9,784) was among the highest ever reported in the country. It was just below an all-time record of 10,561 new cases recorded on Saturday. The number of people being treated in intensive care units for Covid-19 also rose for the 20th straight day Wednesday, Reuters reported, to a three-month high of 803. The total number of cases in France stands at 404,888, according to the French Health Ministry.
Remarking on the rise in cases, French President Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday that the virus was circulating "quicker and quicker in certain parts of the country," Reuters reported.
The U.K., which has the third-highest number of cases in Europe, at 380,677 according to JHU data, has seen an alarming rise in cases across various parts of northern England in recent weeks. It has started to reintroduce measures to restrict social gatherings, with the number of people allowed to meet now limited to six in England. Stricter measures targeting north-east England could be announced Thursday, the BBC reported.
Italy, which was the epicenter of Europe's first coronavirus outbreak in February but now has the fourth-highest number of reported infections, at 291,442 to date, has also seen cases rise. The health ministry said Wednesday that Italy has registered 1,452 new cases in the last 24 hours, up from 1,229 new cases on Tuesday, although this was partly attributed to a sharp increase in coronavirus tests, news agency ANSA reported. Nonetheless, the health ministry noted that Italy is seeing the highest number of active cases since June, with 40,532 people currently infected with the coronavirus.
Germany, which was seen as a poster-child for its handling of the first wave of the coronavirus cases, having managed to keep its death toll low compared to its number of cases, has seen a slight rise in cases.
The Robert Koch Institute, which monitors the epidemic in Germany, said Wednesday that "the increase in the number of cases reported since mid-July had stabilized at a slightly higher level in calendar weeks 35 (beginning August 24) and 36, but since calendar week 37, a slight increase can be observed again." It added that more young people have become infected in recent weeks.
So far, the death toll from rising infections has been significantly lower than in spring and early summer when the virus first hit Europe, but the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that this could change as winter approaches.
The increases in the number of reported infections has, in part, been attributed to more sophisticated and active testing regimes in Europe, but the ECDC said Wednesday that "although increased testing contributes to better awareness of all ongoing transmission, it is not the only reason for the increase of Covid-19 cases." It linked the rise to the relaxation of physical distancing and other preventive measures.
"As schools reopen and more indoor activities are held, the increase of cases comes as a reminder that the pandemic is not over," the ECDC warned, as it reminded the public to continue basic measures to prevent the spread of the virus, including hand washing, face masks and self-isolation when feeling ill.
There are concerns that healthcare systems could be overwhelmed as winter nears and the ECDC noted that, as flu season approaches, the preparedness of healthcare systems across Europe is "vital."
"This includes essential services, primary care facilities and hospitals ensuring appropriate surge capacity plans in case of a high demand for the care of patients with respiratory distress," it said.
U.S. Leads the List of Most Deaths and Cases Whereas China Isn’t Even in the Top Five in Asia
Since 31 December 2019 and as of 17 September 2020, 29,902,487 cases of COVID-19 (in accordance with the applied case definitions and testing strategies in the affected countries) have been reported, including 941,291 deaths.
Cases have been reported from:
Africa: 1,374,374 cases; the five countries reporting most cases are South Africa (653,444), Egypt (101,500), Morocco (92,016), Ethiopia (66,224) and Nigeria (56,604).
Asia: 8,926,082 cases; the five countries reporting most cases are India (5,118,253), Iran (410,334), Bangladesh (342,671), Saudi Arabia (327,551) and Pakistan (303,634).
Americas: 15,245,252 cases; the five countries reporting most cases are United States (6,630,891), Brazil (4,419,083), Peru (744,400), Colombia (736,377) and Mexico (680,931).
Europe: 4,324,110 cases; the five countries reporting most cases are Russia (1,079,519), Spain (614,360), France (404,888), United Kingdom (378,219) and Italy (291,442).
Oceania: 31,973 cases; the five countries reporting most cases are Australia (26,779), Guam (1,966), New Zealand (1,458), French Polynesia (1,135) and Papua New Guinea (516).
Other: 696 cases have been reported from an international conveyance in Japan.
Deaths have been reported from:
Africa: 33,246 deaths; the five countries reporting most deaths are South Africa (15,705), Egypt (5,696), Morocco (1,686), Algeria (1,645) and Nigeria (1,091).
Asia: 168,723 deaths; the five countries reporting most deaths are India (83,198), Iran (23,632), Indonesia (9,100), Iraq (8,248) and Turkey (7,249).
Americas: 522,420 deaths; the five countries reporting most deaths are United States (196,802), Brazil (134,106), Mexico (71,978), Peru (31,051) and Colombia (23,478).
Europe: 216,005 deaths; the five countries reporting most deaths are United Kingdom (41,684), Italy (35,645), France (31,045), Spain (30,243) and Russia (18,917).
Oceania: 890 deaths; the five countries reporting most deaths are Australia (824), Guam (29), New Zealand (25), Papua New Guinea (6) and Fiji (2).
Other: 7 deaths have been reported from an international conveyance in Japan.
Hong Kong Company Claims Air Purifier Removes 99.9% of COVD.
Hong Kong-based Aurabeat has created an air purifier that can eliminate over 99.9% of Covid-19. CEO Phil Yuen says the company has seen a significant surge in global demand since launching the air filtration device.
Aurabeat’s AG+ Silver Ion Plasma Sterilization Air Purifier cleans the air while actively eliminating bacteria and viruses. Yuen says Aurabeat developed the technology late last year.
“We’ve seen a significant increase in orders and distribution requests coming from universities, hospitals, government agencies all looking to provide the same level of protection we’re able to do here in Hong Kong,” Yuen told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia.”
Yuen told CNBC MRIGlobal, a U.S. research laboratory, verified the air purifier’s ability to eliminate more than 99.9% of Covid-19 in 30 minutes, though the company acknowledges the machine’s filter falls 0.3% shy of the gold-standard HEPA filters. The FDA has cleared Aurabeat to market the device in the U.S. as a medical grade air purifier under their modified enforcement policy for Covid-19.
Nanofiber Mask and HVAC Filter Company off to Fast Start
Inc magazine interviewed the founder of a filter and media supplier using nanofibers. When the Coronavirus struck the U.S. in January 24-year-old Dakota Hendrickson was just weeks away from launching his nanofiber HVAC air filter startup, Filti. Suddenly making filters for facemasks became an even better idea.
"I will not forget the minute we flipped the website on," says Hendrickson. It was March 27 at around 10:30 a.m. "In a couple of days, I had 2,000 emails in my inbox," he says.
The experience since has been nothing short of dizzying and par for the course for any company in the business of selling personal protective equipment (PPE) these days. While live events companies and restaurants have been hamstrung (or worse) by the pandemic, the businesses that make PPE or that have transitioned to producing different protective garments have been buoyed by the unfortunate turn.
That growth is apparent at Filti. The Kansas City, Missouri-based company has shipped more than 325,000 square meters of bulk facemask material and around three million standalone mask inserts. On average, one square meter can yield about 25 to 40 facemasks. Filti booked roughly $2 million in sales from the material in its first 45 days of operation and has grown 190 percent in the past 90 days.
The idea for Filti originally came to Hendrickson by way of Monte McDowell, an old friend of his father's. McDowell is the CEO of Nxtnano, a Clermont, Oklahoma-based manufacturer of nanofiber material, which is used in everything from high-performance clothing to automotive filtration. After shadowing McDowell for a summer, the nanofiber concept stuck with him, says Hendrickson.
"Every time I turned around, he was grabbing my pant leg, like 'Hey, I want to come down and work for you. I want to be an entrepreneur,'" says McDowell who is also Filti's only investor. After Hendrickson graduated from college at Creighton University in December 2018, McDowell gave him a shot. "I told him we could produce the material if he'd do the business," says McDowell. So together with McDowell's son, Andy McDowell, the three developed the product, set up a website, and prepared to launch Filti.
Despite having to switch gears ahead of launch, Hendrickson says the transition was more or less smooth. Filti's sheets of nanofiber material, which can be used to make facemasks including N95 respirators, are sold directly to end-users on its website. The sheets come in three different sizes and sell for $29.99 to $189.99. A twenty-pack of individual mask inserts sells for $19.99.
The company also recently added HVAC air filters, its intended first product, to its repertoire. The MERV 16 9500 HVAC filter is sold on the company's website and available to ship mid-September. It retails for $39.95 for one or $199.87 for a pack of four, and Hendrickson says it's like an N95 respirator for your house.
The strength of the filter is rated on a Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV) scale, which spans from a rating of 1 to 20, depending on the minimum size of the particles a filter can capture. Filti's filters are MERV 16, the same grade typically used in hospitals, and can capture particulates of bacteria, droplets from sneezing, and smoke greater than 0.3 micrometers. "I wouldn't say they're equivalent to N95 masks," says Donna Hager, president and CEO of Macan Deve, a White Plains, New York-based engineering and architecture firm, "but comparable."
Because Filti's filters use nanofibers--fine networks of fibers that filter particulate matter--they're likely to be more efficient than electrostatic filters that use electricity to catch dust, pollen, and other airborne particulates, says Jeffrey Siegel, a civil engineering professor at the University of Toronto. He points to a 2015 study by James Montgomery at the University of British Colombia, which found that humidity can in some cases lead to efficiency degradation in these filters.
While the use of nanofiber material for filtration has been deployed for some time, Siegel cautions, its adoption for commercial filtration remains somewhat experimental. He studied the use of different MERV filters in residential settings in Toronto. In a 2019 study, he found that home air filters performed worse than lab tests suggested due to the differences in air velocities and gaps around a home's filters. "There are a host of issues that may affect its real-world performance," says Siegel. But if those kinks could be worked out, he believes such a filtration system could offer health benefits.
The next products Filti plans to launch are a MERV 13 washable HVAC filter, which the company plans to start shipping early in October, and finished facemasks - not just material -available to ship this month.
While Hendrickson's quick pivot helped the company launch with an in-demand product at the outset, he's convinced Filti will maintain its popularity long after the pandemic subsides.
Home filtration products, says Hendrickson, give people the chance to level up their filtration status, which will continue to remain important post-pandemic. "The pandemic didn't create a new market for us, but it did put a spotlight on the need for better air quality and air filtration products." Currently, Filti has one patent pending for its washable air filter.
McDowell acknowledges that Hendrickson has a long way to go as an entrepreneur. "He's just learning, right, and he doesn't see some things," he says, referencing Hendrickson's young age and relative lack of experience, "but nobody sees everything." Even so, McDowell anticipates Filti will keep up its momentum.
"There are 100 million or 130 million homes in the United States. So the goal is 5 percent," says McDowell. "If Filti gets 5 percent of the market, it could be doing half a billion dollars a year."
https://www.inc.com/brit-morse/dakota-hendrickson-filti-hvac-filters-facemasks.html
NXTNANO Supplies Media for Masks, HVAC, Gas Turbines and Microfiltration
Masks are only one of a number of large markets for nanofiber media. So suppliers such as NXTNANO can address the expanding mask market with media they are already producing
NXTNANO is a technology company specializing in mass production of nanofibers for extensive end use applications including air and microfiltration media, microporous breathable films, micron rated venting films, life sciences/pharmaceutical medias, and performance apparel. The company does extensive custom development and manufacturing for industry partners wanting proprietary nanofiber technologies for specific applications and industries.
Owning an extensive trade secret portfolio for its process, along with numerous patents and pending for products, NXTNANO is now developing relationships with companies, industries and markets that can benefit from its unique technology skill set.
Gas turbines are an example where the same efficiency is required as in a mask or high efficiency HVAC filter. NXTNANO nTEX medias are used. In some of the toughest turbine environments on earth. From the frigid cold, to scorching heat, and salt laden costal applications they have medias to cover what is needed. nTEX is available in nanofiber treated cellulose blends or synthetic bases in efficiencies from F8-E10+. The proprietary hydro and oleophobic nanofiber stops fine particulate and even low surface tension liquids from penetrating.
nTEX NP003 - F9 Synthetic Filter Media
NP003 Specifications at a Glance
§ Construction: Nanofiber over polyester nonwoven (pulsable surface filtration)
§ Efficiency: F9 / MERV 15
§ Air Permeability:
§ 30 ft3/min/ft2 (cfm) @ 0.5”H2O (ASTM D737) U.S.
§ 140 l/dm2/min @ 200Pa (DIN 53887) Germany
§ 15 cm3/cm2/s @ 125Pa (JIS L 1096 A) Japan
§ Basis Weight: 120 GSM
§ Finish: Standard
§ Available Widths: 25.9 – 82.0 inches (657 – 2030 mm)
§ Process Data: Designed for rotary pleating - pre & post heat recommended
