Following President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement that South Africa would be shifting to level 3 on the 1st of June 2020, Dr Blade Nzimande, Minister of Higher Education said: “Under level 3, a maximum of 33% of the student population will be allowed to return to campuses, delivery sites and residences on condition that they can be safely accommodated and supported in line with the health and safety protocols as directed by the Department.”
A highly technical skilled team from the Durban University of Technology has produced their own hand sanitiser which will be distributed for free to staff and students when the institution re-opens. Professor Kugen Permaul said the hand sanitiser was formed accordingly to the World Health Organization (WHO) specifications. Elaborating on its effectiveness, Permaul said the FastSan 80 Hand Sanitiser uses 80% ethanol as opposed to most of the sanitisers that use 70% or lower ethanol.
“While 70% of ethanol is an effective concentration for inactivating coronaviruses and other micro-organisms, 80% ethanol is more effective. Besides the active ingredient, alcohol, a humectant has been added to moisturize hands and prevent drying out with frequent use. Hydrogen peroxide is added to sterilise the bottles and sanitiser,” noted Permaul.
He drove the sanitizer project with a team from the Department of Biotechnology and Food Technology at DUT comprising of three staff members, Dr Adarsh Puri, Gaositwe Makalomakwa and Siphiwengesihle Mbamali. Their passion for science also led to the evolution of the much-needed product.
Professor Suren Singh, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Applied Sciences said that the faculty has a wide array of expertise that could play a significant role in the fight against Covid-19.”It was only fitting that this project be spearheaded by Professor Kugen Permaul, one of the universities leading Molecular Biologists, and Director of the BRICS consortium on Biomass Utilisation, one of only three globally, to spearhead this project,” he said.
The first batch of 1000 litres of hand sanitiser was produced, bottled, and labelled within four days. The sanitisers have been collected by DUT’s Covid-19 task team and will be distributed to students upon their return to campus life.
“A competition was held within the department to come up with a name for the hand sanitiser. Prof Feroz Swalaha, Head of Department, proposed the winning term FastSan which included the faculty name and the 80 designates the alcohol concentration,” said Permaul.
Additionally, the team is also considering making smaller sizes for portability. The project is currently for internal use at DUT but future plans may include distribution to the community and other organizations.
