Masks that kill the coronavirus on contact are currently in development.
Researchers at the University of Kentucky are working on developing a face mask that could kill the coronavirus on contact.
Dibakar Bhattacharyya, a chemical engineering professor who is the director of the university's Center of Membrane Sciences, recently said that he had come up with an idea for mask that would "capture and deactivate" SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
Bhattacharyya has now secured a $150,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to develop the masks, according to the university. Bhattacharyya, who will serve as the principal investigator on the research team, said it would take around six months to create the finished and tested membrane mask. The work would then be facilitated through a large-scale membrane manufacturer, the university said.
Bhattacharyya explained that the masks will feature enzymes that will attach to the protein spikes on the coronavirus and separate them, thus killing the virus.