A team of ΒιΆΉΣ³»­΄«Γ½ researchers, led by Materials Science and Engineering Professor Sudipta Seal, have been awarded a patent for their nanomaterial-based disinfectant that can kill several viruses, including COVID-19. This is the 85th patent that Seal has been awarded through the ΒιΆΉΣ³»­΄«Γ½ .

The Pegasus Professor and chair of the says this patent was awarded much faster than most, which demonstrates the importance of the disinfectant.

β€œWe are very excited to get this patent accepted so quickly, and we’re glad that the work is of great value for combatting viruses and pathogen-born infections,” Seal says. β€œThanks to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for recognizing this work and to the ΒιΆΉΣ³»­΄«Γ½ Office of Technology Transfer for its support.”

Co-recipients of the patent include Seal’s postdoctoral researcher, Craig Neal ’14 ’16MS ’21PhD, and his former research assistant, Udit Kumar ’22PhD.

How the Disinfectant Works

The COVID-killing coating is made with a nanomaterial that activates under white light, such as sunlight or LED light. As long as the nanomaterial is exposed to a continuous light source, it can regenerate its antiviral properties, creating a self-cleaning effect.

The efficacy of the disinfectant was tested and proven through a study that was published in ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces this past year. The study found that the coating can not only destroy the COVID-19 virus, but it can also combat the spread of Zika virus, SARS, parainfluenza, rhinovirus and vesicular stomatitis.

The research was funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation’s RAPID program and conducted by a multidisciplinary team of researchers, including Griff Parks, a professor in the ΒιΆΉΣ³»­΄«Γ½ and the co-principal investigator of the grant.

Next Steps

Now that the disinfectant has been patented, the research team will continue testing the product and ΒιΆΉΣ³»­΄«Γ½ will seek a commercial partner to manufacture and sell it to a wide range of customers within the next few years.

β€œWe plan to carry on the work in larger samples and also to test in vivo models and other means of infection control,” Seal says. β€œThe process is well defined, and we plan to work with an industry partner to bring it to the mass market.”

Seal joined ΒιΆΉΣ³»­΄«Γ½β€™s Department of Materials Science and Engineering and the , which is part of ΒιΆΉΣ³»­΄«Γ½β€™sΒ College of Engineering and Computer Science, in 1997. He has an appointment at theΒ College of MedicineΒ and is a member of ΒιΆΉΣ³»­΄«Γ½β€™s prosthetics clusterΜύ΅ώΎ±Ύ±΄Η²ΤΎ±³ζ. He is the former director of ΒιΆΉΣ³»­΄«Γ½β€™s and Advanced Materials Processing Analysis Center. He received his doctorate in materials engineering with a minor in biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin and was a postdoctoral fellow at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory at the University of California Berkeley.