Antimicrobial filters for hospital air and water systems

世界上大多数人口现在居住在城市，旅行更多。因此，我们更有可能接触到我们几十年前由于与更多人的互动而不会接触到的感染。环境在某些传染病的传播中起着重要作用，可以通过更好地过滤水和空气来减少这种疾病的传播。目前使用的一些过滤系统在物理上阻止病原体如细菌。然而，这些系统不能阻止病毒颗粒，价格昂贵，需要频繁维护和小心处理。该项目的目的是设计一个空气过滤器和一个水过滤器，这将积极杀死细菌和病毒，从而减少它们在环境中的数量。这些过滤器将需要较少的维护，并且生产成本低廉。在该项目中，我们将首先测试各种纳米颗粒的抗菌效果。然后将这些材料进行化学改性，以便它们可以被纳入适合水和空气过滤的材料中。含有抗菌纳米颗粒的过滤器将使用UCL开发的新的EPSRC资助的纺丝技术生产。一旦我们生产出抗菌过滤材料，我们将测试它们杀死空气中病毒和水中细菌的能力。我们将测试具有不同浓度的抗菌纳米颗粒和不同深度的过滤器。我们还将确保过滤器在真实的世界中使用的流速下有效。抗菌过滤器首先将是医疗保健行业最感兴趣的，但它们也将与忙碌的公共建筑（如学校和养老院）和运输车辆（如飞机）有关。此外，过滤器将能够氧化非生物材料，如焦油和污染颗粒，并将改善一系列室内环境的空气质量。在项目期间，我们将与工业合作伙伴（包括全球最大的过滤公司Pall Corporation）和临床医生合作，以确保我们生产出可行的产品。在项目结束时，该技术将得到验证，并准备扩大生产，我们计划申请进一步的资金与工业合作项目，以便做到这一点。

Most of the world's population is now living in cities and travelling more. As a result we are more likely to come into contact with infections that we would not have been exposed to just a few decades ago due to interactions with more people. The environment plays an important role in the transmission of some infections and it is possible to reduce the transmission of such disease by better filtration of water and air. Some filtration systems are currently used which physically stop pathogens such as bacteria. However these systems cannot stop virus particles, are expensive, require frequent maintenance and careful disposal. The aim of this project is to design one air and one water filter which will actively kill bacteria and viruses, thereby reducing their numbers in the environment. These filters will require less maintenance and be inexpensive to produce. During the project, we will first test the antimicrobial effect of a variety of nanoparticles. These will then be modified chemically so that they can be incorporated into materials that are suitable for water and air filtration. The filters containing the antimicrobial nanoparticles will be produced using a new EPSRC funded spinning technology developed at UCL. Once we have produced the antimicrobial filtration materials, we will test their ability to kill viruses in air and bacteria in water. We will test filters with different concentrations of antimicrobial nanoparticles and with different depths. We will also make sure that the filters are effective at flow rates that are used in the real world. The antimicrobial filters will be of most interest to the healthcare industry in the first instance, but they will also be relevant to busy public buildings (such as schools and care homes) and transport vehicles (such as airplanes). Furthermore, the filters will be capable of oxidising non-biological materials, like tar and pollution particulates and will improve air quality in a range of indoor environments. During the project we will be collaborating with industrial partners (including Pall Corporation, the world's biggest filtration company) and clinicians to ensure that we produce a viable product. At the end of the project, the technology will be validated and ready for scale-up production and we plan to apply for further funding for a collaborative project with industry in order to do this.