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MTU sanitizer awaiting OK for testing

HOUGHTON — Federal approval is still needed before testing can begin on a Michigan Technological University project to sanitize personal protection equipment with high levels of heat. 

The Mobile Thermal Unity (MTU) Sanitizer was first tested on Michigan Technological University’s campus by an engineering team from Michigan Tech and local company Aire Care.

A shipping container was refitted to be able to heat PPE to up to 170 degrees to eliminate any trace of coronavirus. Up to 10,000 PPE could be disinfected every two hours. 

The MTU tests were promising, but for health reasons, only involved the heating component. 

Tests involving actual coronavirus will be performed in Taylor, Michigan, where a National Guard unit is preparing. 

“They’ve been drilling on it, so they understand how to operate it,” said Andrew Barnard, an associate professor of mechanical engineering at Michigan Tech and the director of the Great Lakes Research Center.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has yet to give the go-ahead on testing. In the meantime, there has been high interest from health care providers and potential manufacturing partners, Barnard said. 

“When we get that approval, we expect things to move quickly, and for these things to be manufactured,” he said. 

The holdup appears to mostly be a matter of paperwork, Barnard said. He described a daily back-and-forth answering questions with the FDA.  

“I think we’re getting close, but I don’t know exactly what the endpoint is,” he said.

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