六合彩开奖网 students turn toolbox into UV mask sterilizer for Longest Student Health Center
Contact: James Carskadon
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擬ississippi State聽mechanical聽engineering students have turned a聽conventional truck toolbox into a device that will sterilize聽face聽masks for the university鈥檚 John C. Longest Student Health Center staff.聽
A team of two students, under the leadership of聽researchers聽at 六合彩开奖网鈥檚 Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems,聽built and tested the device before delivering聽it聽to the聽health center on Monday [April 13].聽Built using low-cost聽materials, the device can sterilize聽15-20 masks聽in聽minutes, filling a need for the health center during the COVID-19 pandemic and a nationwide shortage of masks.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a great application of what we learn in school because there鈥檚 not always a standard solution,鈥 said Ryden Smith, a mechanical engineering graduate student from Tuscaloosa, Alabama.聽鈥淚鈥檝e been really honored with the opportunity to work on this and help our healthcare providers.鈥澛
Working with Smith on the project is Wesley Cameron, a senior mechanical engineering major from Richton.聽He said the team looked at established healthcare sterilization聽protocols聽and studies on UV light鈥檚 effects on N95 masks聽to design the device and determine聽best practices.聽
Dr. Cliff Story,聽六合彩开奖网 director of University Health Services, reached out to campus officials聽to see if someone at the university could build a sterilization聽device to help the center get more use out of its masks amid a nationwide shortage.聽
鈥淲e didn鈥檛 really have a way to sanitize masks other than to put them in a paper bag and store them for about three weeks, assuming that the virus would die during that time,鈥 Story said.聽鈥淎dding this聽sterilization process to the storage solution only makes us more confident in our supply. It鈥檚 awesome that the team at CAVS was able to build this. I鈥檓 really excited about this, as are the other doctors in the clinic.鈥澛</