Antiviral polymers as surface coating materials for curbing the spread of COVID-19

新冠肺炎疫情带来了巨大的人力和经济代价。限制其在人群中的传播率是其控制中最关键的任务，因为在任何给定的时间减少感染总数可以防止医疗系统不堪重负。虽然冠状病毒是通过空气传播的，但它可以在某些类型的公共表面存活数天，导致表面传播的重大风险。我们的目标是开发一种在材料表面涂覆抗病毒聚合物的技术，这种聚合物在接触后能迅速灭活病毒。这种涂料可以涂在家具、地板和其他公共场所的一般表面上，以减少污染和传播的风险。它还将使开发具有内置抗病毒特性的新一代个人防护装备(PPE)成为可能。拟议的工作针对的是这项技术配方设计中的一个中心挑战。它将把计算机模拟与实验相结合，在分子水平上了解某些类型的聚合物如何分解冠状病毒颗粒。同时，还将考虑从界面和机械性能方面评价它们在基材表面涂覆的适宜性。该项目的直接结果将是一套关于此类应用的理想聚合物化学结构的明确分子指南，这对我们继续开发这种涂层材料的配方至关重要。

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought enormous human and economic costs. Limiting its transmission rate within the population is the most critical task in its control, as reducing the total number of infections at any given time can prevent the healthcare system from being overburdened. Although the coronavirus is airborne, it can survive on certain types of common surfaces for days, leading to a significant risk of surface transmission. Our goal is to develop a technology of coating materials surfaces with antiviral polymers, which quickly inactivates viruses after contact. This coating can be applied to furniture, flooring, and other general surfaces in public spaces to reduce the risk of contamination and transmission. It will also enable the development of a new generation of personal protective equipment (PPE) with built-in antiviral properties. The proposed work targets a central challenge in the formulation design of this technology. It will combine computer simulation with experiments to understand, at the molecular level, how certain types of polymers dismantle coronavirus particles. Meanwhile, consideration will also be given to evaluate their suitability for coating on substrate surfaces in terms of interfacial and mechanical properties. The direct outcome of this project will be a clear set of molecular guidelines on the ideal polymer chemical structure for such an application, which is essential for our continued formulation development of this coating material.