by Brianna Crandall — June 5, 2020 — Toronto-based research and development company EnvisionSQ recently announced the release of its NanoCleanSQ disinfectant coating to curb the spread of COVID-19. NanoCleanSQ transforms the company’s existing pollution removal technology, SmogStop, into an innovative self-sterilizing, long- lasting clear coating that kills viruses and bacteria, including COVID-19, on contact for weeks to years.
Pathogens such as COVID-19 can survive outside the human body for days, and surface contamination contributes to their spread, points out EnvisionSQ. While standard sanitizing solutions are able to kill germs quickly and effectively, they are not long lasting and require constant re-applications to keep surfaces safe.
According to EnvisionSQ and its academic partner University of Guelph, NanoCleanSQ kills viruses, bacteria and fungi with more than 99.9999 percent efficiency on contact, including COVID-19, and is long lasting. In addition to its active ingredient, whenever the nanocoating is exposed to light, a special photocatalytic ingredient provides an extra boost of germ-killing action.
Scott Shayko, CEO of EnvisionSQ, stated:
We always knew that our SmogStop pollution removal technology had the ability to kill bacteria and viruses, but it was not optimized for this purpose. We specifically reformulated SmogStop to help society combat the COVID-19 pandemic. We couldn’t have done this without the swift help from NGen. Being entrepreneurs, the NGen support allowed us to pivot our research and scale up production of NanoCleanSQ.
Application of NanoCleanSQ on high-touch surfaces is said to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in essential facilities such as hospitals, public transit, daycare centers and other public spaces. Reducing surface contamination will have a direct impact on helping protect front-line health workers, elderly in long-term care homes, public transit workers and everyday people to expedite the return to normalcy, says the company.
EnvisionSQ says its proprietary NanoCleanSQ coating is powered by light and is nontoxic and environmentally friendly. The coating uses nanotechnology to bond to any material; simply apply the coating onto hard surfaces such as handrails and hospital equipment or soft surfaces such as fabric seats.
One application is usually sufficient, according to the company; the semipermanent coating “can withstand exposure to moisture and will continue working whether the surface is wet or dry. Indoors, it will continue standing guard against pathogens week after week and month after month unless it is intentionally removed with vigorous scrubbing. Outdoors, just apply a new coat after steady rain or snow.”
For more information about the new NanoCleanSQ coating, visit the company’s website.
EnvisionSQ is a research and development company that tackles some of the world’s greatest health issues. The company’s innovative technologies create cleaner, safer environments for communities around the world; its original SmogStop products break down air pollutants indoors, and outside in highly polluted areas like highways.
