IIT Alumani Invent Airlens Minus Corona Sterilisation Device to Fight Coronavirus Outbreak

The whole world is grappling with the coronavirus pandemic that has claimed nearly 38,000 lives and infected 784,000 people worldwide. The virus has infected over 1,300 people with 45 dead in India so far. As the health experts are toiling to find a cure, IIT alumnus, Debayan Saha and Dr. Shashi Ranjan have come up with a device that could possibly restrict the spread of COVID-19.

Christened the ‘Airlens Minus Corona’, this human-shaped robot device will sterilise streets and public places like hospitals, bus stops, railway stations, shopping malls. The machine discharges charged or ionised water droplets to sterilise surfaces that can potentially be infected and a potential medium of the spread of the coronavirus.

Image: The Better India

According to the inventors, the power lies in electrifying water droplets to eliminate coronavirus. Water droplets can be ionised using Corona Discharge. The ionised water droplets can help in the oxidation of viral proteins into non-harmful molecules. Oxidation is one of the most potent antimicrobial tools.

The charged or ionised water droplets can kill the virus by deactivating viruses by denaturing their protein coat. In other words, the droplets help in the oxidation (one of the most potent antimicrobial tool) of viral proteins into non-harmful molecules.

Explained Saha.

The sanitisers are useful in lessening the threat of catching the coronavirus just like our machine. Through this machine, we can arrest the virus and may flatten the curve.

He further said.

There are various ways through which viruses can be inactivated – alcohol is one of them and alcohol-based hand sanitisers are useful for people or for sanitizing surfaces on a smaller scale but deficient in such an emergency to use them for sanitising entire cities.

Also Read: First Indian Made COVID-19 Testing Kit

Titled Airlens Minus Corona, it dissipates the coronavirus using the electrical energy of corona. This technology, however, is not new and is currently being used in Vietnam.

Previously, the duo of Debayan Saha and Shashi Ranjan had invented devices like PM Minus 2.5 to help curb vehicular pollution. Saha claimed that one car fitted with the device would neutralise pollution emitted from 10 cars.

Via: The Better India