In an attempt at providing new technologies to contain the spread of COVID-19, the Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute (CMERI), Durgapur, a laboratory of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), has developed low-cost disinfection walkways.
The walkway, which costs about ₹1.5 lakh on an average, can be easily installed in critical locations such as isolation/quarantine facilities, mass transit system entry points and medical centres, CMERI Director-General Harish Hirani said. The walkway uses mist type spray ensuring maximum target coverage with minimum shadow area of an individual.
Two variants
“We started working on these walkways from the third week of March and now we are ready with two variants, Pneumatic Variant Disinfection Walkway and Hydraulic Variant Disinfection Walkway. This is cost-effective and can be easily installed,” Mr. Hirani said.
According to the CMERI D-G, the walkways use mist type spray, whose particle size could be as small as 100 to 200 microns. “We have already got orders from the local municipal corporation like Asansol and Durgapur and some schools in the region,” Mr. Hirani said.
Depending on how much chemicals are used, the walkways can sanitise a person in 20 to 30 seconds. Both the walkways have been installed on the CEMRI campus in Durgapur.
Researchers say that in these disinfectant walkways, the base liquid is sodium hypochlorite along with which soap and ethanol are added. In certain cases, if people are allergic to chlorine, the liquid can be changed to iodine-based solutions.
Emphasising that these walkways will become a part of people’s lives post the coronavirus outbreak, Mr. Hirani said the variants made by the CMERI could be easily customised.
Recently, during a videoconference with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Nobel Laureate Abhjit Vinayak Banerjee has suggested sanitising the markets.
The CMERI has also developed road sanitisers, which can help municipal bodies.
