A Research team at Technion University in Haifa in Israel claims to have invented a face mask that is reusable and can kill the coronavirus by drawing power from the charger of a mobile phone using the heat generated.
The team led by Professor Yair Ein-Eli has stated that the complete disinfection process will take approximately 30 minutes and the users should not be wearing the mask for the time it is plugged in.
The new mask is provided with a USB port that connects to a power source like a standard mobile phone charger which heats the inner layer composed of carbon fibers to a temperature as high as 70 degrees Celsius which is high enough to kill the viruses.
Professor Yair Ein-Eli further stated that as the disposable masks available in the market and currently in high demand globally during the spread of the global pandemic are not economical or environmentally friendly. So, a need was felt to invest time and resources in developing a solution to this problem as a result of which the reusable face masks have been invented.
However, the only concern that was raised by professor Allon Moses, an infectious disease expert at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem was regarding the damage of the mask’s fiber due to repeated heating. However, Ein-Eli confirmed that during testing, exposure to around 20 heating cycles didn’t have any impact on the durability of the mask.