STTR Phase I: Scaling and Optimizing Manufacturing Methods for Germicidal Optical Fibers (GOF) to prevent disease-causing biofilms in tight channels

这个小型技术转移研究(STTR)第一阶段项目的更广泛影响是推动杀菌光纤(GOF)的发展。GOFs的侧面像荧光棒一样，沿着其整个长度发射紫外线-C(UV-C)辐射。在家庭、企业和医院的狭窄渠道中使用它们可以消除导致操作问题、感染甚至死亡的病原体和病毒。将紫外线辐射分配到紧密通道的能力优于目前的生物膜预防方法，即使用化学管理或表面改性，这种方法作用时间短(几天)，破坏表面并产生有害副产品。这项技术有望扩展到生物医疗设备、家用电器、空气净化和水系统等其他行业。该项目将把GOFs的可制造性从不可伸缩的浸渍涂层工艺提高到拉伸塔。GOF由两部分组成：a)装有UV-C LED的光引擎和b)发射光纤的UV侧。从LED发出的UV-C光(波长为265 nm)穿过玻璃芯层并被纳米粒子涂层散射，从而将UV-C光发射到周围环境(空气/水)。目前，制造GOFs所需的特定材料不适合在拉丝塔中制造，而且技术仅限于1m刚性纤维。因此，该项目的具体目标是：(I)创新外部纳米聚合物的化学成分，使其能够分配UV-C辐射用于拉丝塔应用；(Ii)修改拉丝塔的制造步骤，以实现直径300微米的大规模制造，以增加灵活性和50米长的GOFs；以及(Iii)控制大规模制造中的纳米颗粒定位，以增强光纤长度的均匀光散射轮廓。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 of this Small Technology Transfer Research (STTR) Phase 1 project is to advance the development of germicidal optical fibers (GOF). GOFs side emit ultraviolet-C (UV-C) radiation along their entire length like a glowstick. Their use in tight channels of homes, businesses, and hospitals can eliminate pathogenic bacteria and viruses that cause operational issues, infections and even deaths. The ability to distribute ultraviolet radiation into tight channels outranks the current biofilm prevention approach of using chemical management or surface modification that works for a short duration (days), damage surfaces and produces harmful by-products. This technology holds promise for extension to other industries in biomedical devices, home appliances, air purification and water systems. This project will advance the manufacturability of GOFs from a non-scalable dip coating process to a draw tower. GOFs consist of two parts: a) a light engine that houses a UV-C LED and b) a UV side emitting optical fiber. UV-C light (265 nm wavelength) is sent from the LED through the glass core and scattered by a nanoparticle coating, resulting in emission of UV-C light into the surrounding environment (air/water). Currently, the specific material needed for the manufacturing of GOFs are not suitable for manufacturing in a draw tower, and the technology is limited to 1 m rigid fibers. Therefore, the specific objectives in this project are to (i) innovate the chemistry of the external nano-enabled polymer able to distribute UV-C radiation for draw tower application, (ii) modify the manufacturing steps in a draw tower to enable large scale manufacturing of 300 µm diameter for increased flexibility and 50 m length GOFs and (iii) control nanoparticle positioning in large scale manufacturing to enhance uniform light scattering profile through the length of the fiber.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.