Scientists developed a mobile indoor disinfection sprayer
Scientists at CSIR-Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-CMERI), Durgapur, have developed two mobile indoor Disinfection Sprayer units. These units can be used for cleaning and disinfecting the pathogenic micro-organism effectively, especially in hospitals and diagnostic centres. Entitled as Battery Powered Disinfectant Sprayer (BPDS) and Pneumatically Operated Mobile Indoor Disinfection (POMID), these units can be used to clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces such as tables, doorknobs, light switches, countertops, handles, desks, phones, keyboards, toilets, faucets, sinks, and cardboards. Intermittent usage of these disinfecting units can minimize the risk of coronavirus transmission for the people who inadvertently come in contact with those surfaces.
The sprayer systems in both BPDS and POMID are designed with two-stage spraying units with a separate storage tank for each to manoeuvre a hygienic environment in the enclosed areas and they are monitored with fixed numbers of flexible nozzles set in the lower and upper tiers of the unit. There is also an industrial variant of the Disinfectant Sprayer for large scale implementation. POMID mobile indoor disinfectant unit assembled over a steel frame mounted on four wheels with a system enabled with compressors, pipe-fittings and spray nozzles. The hand-held spray arm has the flexibility to move in any direction as per requirement. Each unit of POMID has two storage tank of capacity 10 litres for smoother operation.
The technology will have relevance even beyond the current COVID-19 crisis, since viruses have been existent throughout and a substantial number of cases of influenza have been spreading throughout the globe every year.
The other unit entitled BPDS has a cordless interface with two-nozzle spray system and an extended arm spray unit. The storage capacity of 20 litres with a battery back-up time of 4 hours in a single charge is vital feature in the system. The gross weight of the system is 25 kg (with an empty tank).
“Most of the disinfectant sprayers prevalent in the market are based either on cleaning or disinfecting using a single chamber storage for the liquid and are pump-based. The droplets produced by a pump sprayer are much larger in size and the effective coverage of surface is lesser. However, the CSIR-CMERI developed indoor sprayer systems consists of dualchamber storage for disinfectants and cleaning and have better nozzle design, better arrangement of nozzles and lesser droplet sizes. The sprayed disinfectantcan thus cover a greater surface area for the specified volume of liquid”, said Prof. Harish Hirani, Director, CSIR-CMERI.
“The particle size and the number of particles of disinfectant disposed are the two important parameters for determining the effectiveness of the disinfectant sprayer. CSIR-CMERI is consistently focussed upon developing an efficient and effective technology to administer the spread of COVID-19. The next stage of development for the devices would be to incorporate 360-degree coverage for disinfectants and cleaning spray as well as to make it compact and autonomous for usage in schools and homes”, added Prof. Hirani.
These sprayers are also equipped with mopping features and extendable arms to reach hidden area and clean comprehensively. The technology will have relevance even beyond the current COVID-19 crisis, since viruses have been existent throughout and a substantial number of cases of influenza have been spreading throughout the globe every year. Hence, Dr. Hirani has urged the MSMEs of the nation to come forward and invest in this technology, keeping in mind the future orientation of hygiene and healthcare devices. The technology for BPDS is transferred to Power Tech Mining Pvt. Ltd. on the same day for commercialization.
Credit: India Science Wire
