In the current COVID-19 context, more than ever protection is key to limit and stop the spreading of the disease. The whole scientific and medical community is on the front line and many initiatives are emerging to help find solutions in any way.
A research team from the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain, is working on a project funded by the Galician government for the use of supercritical fluids in the sterilization and reprocessing of personal protective equipment (PPE) used in the COVID-19 pandemic.
The project is led by Dr. Carlos A. García González, who chairs the COST Action AERoGELS, which stands for: Advanced Engineering and Research of aeroGels for Environment and Life Sciences.”
The idea emerged during the general scarcity of PPE that took place in the most critical times of the COVID-19 pandemic, that made many healthcare workers reuse their disposable equipment for much longer times than recommended thus posing themselves in risk.
“We were impacted by the images in mass media during this pandemic of hospital personnel wearing self-made gowns and by reusing face masks due to PPE shortage. We were working since several years on the development of a sterilization technology for bone grafts and, then the idea of implementing it for PPEs came out in an attempt to contribute with our expertise to attenuate the pandemic effects. We carried out preliminary studies of PPE reprocessing with our technology and the results were very encouraging” says Dr. Carlos A. García González chairing the Action.
The research group has developed and patented a sterilization method using supercritical CO2 at mild conditions potentially applicable to the reprocessing of PPEs. Most conventional sterilization methods such as heat, chemical, or radiation are not usually compatible with these materials. Supercritical sterilization uses supercritical CO2 at mild operating conditions of pressure and temperature that can kill not only SARS-CoV-2 but other potentially hazardous microorganisms such as bacteria, even in their most resistant forms. When transferred to the hospital, this technology would allow longer use of PPEs for several cycles without damage on the performance of the material.
The project is financed by the Galician government, Xunta de Galicia, through the Axencia de Coñecemento en Saúde, the Regional Health Service, under its ‘Translacion COVID-19’ programme. It is a translational project aiming to transfer the technology to hospitals in the region of Galicia and Spain, and involves collaborative work with industrial partners in Spain and Germany.
A great success for the COST Action AERoGELS, which aims at identifying opportunities of aerogels and related technologies to give response to the current European demands and particularly in this current COVID-19 context.
By developing aerogel‐based products for biomedical and environmental applications, the network can actively contribute to solve the current unveiled challenges in these fields. Aerogels are being assessed from a materials performance point of view but also regarding health and environmental implications. To support this mission the Action network is bringing together scientists from more than 250 research institutions and companies spread in 45 countries with a multidisciplinary approach to tackle two of the current main European challenges: circular economy and active ageing.
In the long run, this multidisciplinary network will focus on developing aerogel technology to improve the welfare of Europeans and move towards smarter and cleaner production in Europe.
More positive outcomes to the society from COST Action AERoGELS members for other biomedical and environmental applications are expected to come up.
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