SBIR Phase I: Rapid disinfection using compact plasma reactors for COVID-19

这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)项目的广泛影响/商业潜力是一种方便、有效、绿色和经济的日常用品消毒解决方案，受病原体污染，特别是SARS-CoV-2。该项目将开发一种便携式、紧凑、低功耗的臭氧消毒产品。建议的解决方案将解决其他难以用传统方法处理的项目，如擦拭、紫外线曝光和高压灭菌器。此外，它没有长期的有毒残留物，过量的臭氧可以转化为氧气。这将支持缓解社会距离的政策和应用，包括个人防护设备，如消毒口罩、手套、西装、设备等，以及家庭用品。这项SBIR第一阶段项目建议开发一种方便、有效、绿色和经济的消毒装置，基于介质阻挡放电(DBD)产生的臭氧，以消除病原体污染。该解决方案使用嵌入式紧凑型等离子反应堆系统，从大气空气中就地产生臭氧，并同时将其分配到盒子内。这消除了对外部气罐或混合剂的需要。拟议的项目将推进有源等离子体模块(APM)-一种紧凑、节能的DBD产生设备。研究目标包括测试DBD血浆对SARS CoV-2的抵抗力，确定最佳操作条件(暴露时间、臭氧浓度、表面积与体积比、输入功率)，以及测试对织物、乳胶等常用材料的消毒。这需要为APM设计DBD反应器，并将其集成到封闭系统中，以及在不同操作条件下测试SARS-CoV-2的灭活。该系统有望迅速灭活SARS-CoV-2，同时克服传统消毒技术的局限性，如高温、材料不兼容和对受阻表面的无效消毒。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project is a convenient, effective, green and economical disinfection solution for everyday items contaminated with pathogens, specifically SARS-CoV-2. This project will develop a portable, compact, and low-power disinfection product using ozone. The proposed solution will address items otherwise difficult to treat with conventional methods such as wipes, UV exposure, and autoclave. Furthermore, it is free of long-term toxic residuals, with excess ozone converted back to oxygen. This will support the mitigation of social distancing policies and applications include personal protection equipment such as disinfecting masks, gloves, suits, equipment, etc., as well as household items.This SBIR Phase I project proposes to develop a convenient, effective, green and economical disinfection unit, based on Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) generated ozone, to remove pathogen contamination. The solution uses embedded compact plasma reactor systems to generate ozone in-situ from atmospheric air and simultaneously distributing it within the box. This eliminates the need for external gas tanks or mixing agents. The proposed project will advance the Active Plasma Module (APM) - a compact, energy-efficient DBD generation device. Research objectives include testing DBD plasma against SARS CoV-2, determining optimum operating conditions (exposure times, ozone concentrations, surface to volume ratios, input power), and testing disinfection on commonly used materials like fabric, latex, etc. This entails designing DBD reactors for APMs and for their integration in an enclosed system, as well as testing of SARS-CoV-2 inactivation under varying operating conditions. This system is expected to rapidly inactivate SARS-CoV-2 while overcoming limitations of conventional disinfection technologies like high temperatures, material incompatibility and ineffective disinfection of obstructed surfaces.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.