After being contacted by their longtime research partners at New York City’s Mount Sinai Hospital, scientists at RPI have designed a machine that uses UVC light to disinfect the masks worn by doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals.

“It was an immediate need and we needed an immediate solution,” said Deepak Vashishth, the director of RPI’s Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies.

“It’s been known for well over 100 years this UVC radiation can be used to kill viruses and microbes,” said RPI Center for Lighting Enabled Systems & Applications Director Bob Karlicek.

Designed in a few short weeks, the system is built with two mercury tubes that expose the masks from both sides.

“You need enough light to be able to penetrate the mask and reach all of the different parts of the mask to be able to do the best job you can to kill the microbes,” Karlicek said.

By placing the masks on a conveyor belt, researchers can control the amount of UVC radiation that penetrates the masks.

“We should be able to run several thousand masks through the machine in a given day,” Karlicek said. “What we are going to be waiting for is an understanding of what doses are required for the COVID-19 virus. Those tests are being done at Mount Sinai right now.”

Once Mount Sinai completes its testing, the device could immediately be used to disinfect the PPE worn by medical professionals on the front lines. RPI scientists say this is their way of stepping up to help when it’s needed most.

“It was just something little that we could do to try to help,” Karlicek said.

“COVID-19 is a terrible disease, but in some strange way, it’s brought us all together,” Vashishth said.