In times like these when people working in close human-to-human contact sectors are worried about contracting the virus, an Indian startup has come to their rescue. To provide extra protection to frontline healthcare workers and hotels and restaurant staff, among others, technology startup Muse Nanobots has launched a nanotech coating for textiles that inactivates the Coronavirus within five minutes of contact. The coating validated at the US Lab in accordance with International Standards has been developed by Muse Nanobots which is a subsidiary of the IIT Madras-incubated Muse Wearables Startup.
Muse Nanobots co-founder Sai Prasanth said, “Muse Nanobots coating has displayed a strong anti-bacterial activity on human pathogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli, and Staphylococcus aureus, among others. The coating makes the textile surface self-sanitising and provides a germ-resistant surface. This shows that the nano coat on textiles can become an added layer of protection. It can be applied on any kind of fabric and can be coated on masks, PPE kits, clothes and packaging material. The test also has shown that it is non-toxic to human cells and is comfortable to use.”
The startup is targeting the installation of their nanocoating machines in around 15 Indian textile companies that make regular office and casual attires, sportswear, PPEs, decor industry (curtains, bedsheets) and packaging material makers by end of 2020.
The startups’s CEO Gautam Reddy said that the nano coating machine can coat fabrics at an industrial production scale and can be integrated into the existing textile production facilities. “No changes in the textile fabrics observed after the coating process which makes this relevant for various textile applications. The coating lasts up to 60 washes when washed below 70 degrees Celsius,” he added.
Apart from direct installations at partner locations, Muse Nanobots also has a coating facility based in Bengaluru where textile companies can send their fabrics to be treated with the antiviral coating. The startup plans to establish three more coating facilities at different cities to cater to the textile coating demand. Muse Nanobots face masks will be available in the market by the first week of September 2020 on e-commerce platforms and Muse Nanobots website.
