A company from Alicante has patented a mask without a filter capable of eliminating the virus while breathing , thanks to a UV-C laser curtain. The proposal, from Flat Tbue Energy, would end the contamination caused by the waste from disposable masks, the company said in a statement.
Thanks to two startups with a clear R&D commitment from the Miguel Hernández UMH University) of Elche and Repsol’s Emprendedores Fund, a mask ‘made in Spain’ has been achieved based on low frequency ultraviolet technology, emitted by directed laser diodes, which allows in a confined labyrinth chamber to destroy the coronavirus, among other pathogens, while breathing.
All this with a battery with 10 hours of autonomy that recharges like a mobile phone . With a low production cost and carried out in 3D printing in our country -without the need for foreign supply-, it is based on the technique that David J. Benner, professor of Radiation Biophysics and Environmental Health Sciences and director of the Center of Radiological Research at CUIMCY.
In his main study he concludes that far UVC light has a very limited range and cannot penetrate through the outer layer of dead cells of human skin or the layer of tears in the eye, so it is not a danger to the Human health.
However, viruses and bacteria are much smaller than human cells, so far UVC light can reach their genetic material and inactivate them thanks to far UVC attacking the molecular bonds that hold DNA together.
This same technology is on which the mask is based, which, thanks to a sealed chamber , eliminates the risk of contact, a great design challenge with a Spanish seal that aims to revolutionize and collaborate with waste control.
This finding suggests that the use of far ultraviolet light in this mask could provide not only protection against Covid-19 , but also against seasonal flu epidemics, as well as prevent the spread of pandemics related to this and other diseases
