COVID-19: Researches develop an air filter which can eliminate coronavirus

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COVID-19
COVID-19

New York : The coronavirus outbreak has changed our lives and we're all stuck in a major health crisis with no way out. This contagious virus has no cure, vaccine or treatment which makes it very difficult to bring it under control. COVID-19 continues to spread and claim lives across the globe. While the scientists and researchers are busy looking for a cure or a vaccine that can put an end to all our troubles, there are other people who are working hard to innovate new ways to disinfect places and kill coronavirus and prevent it from spreading further. 

In one such case, scientists have created an air filter which can kill the virus that spreads coronavirus. This air filter is made from commercially available nickel foam heated to about 200 degrees Celsius (392 degrees Fahrenheit). It was tested at the Galveston National Laboratory which is run by the University of Texas Medical Branch. The research found that 99.8 per cent of COVID-19 virus was eliminated in a single pass through this filter and 99.9 per cent anthrax spores were also killed by this air filter. The researchers published this study in the Materials Today Physics journal. 

Research claims that coronavirus cannot survive in high temperatures above 70 degrees celsius and this is why this air filter uses a heated filter. They hope that this air filter can be used in public places like aeroplanes, offices, schools and other such places and can prevent coronavirus from spreading further. They used nickel foam as it is porous but it does have a drawback which is that it has low resistivity which was a challenge that the researches managed to overcome. This air filter gets electronically heated and does not use an external power source which in turn makes it more efficient. This air filter is the first one of it's kind and it might just help us prevent the spread of COVID-19 which may or may not be airborne.