Coronavirus: IIT Hyderabad researchers develop their own hand sanitizer

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad researchers have prepared their own hand sanitizer. According to a statement from IIT Hyderabad, the sanitizer has been made according to the guidelines suggested by World Health Organization (WHO) and Centers for Disease Control (CDC), a Federal Health Agency in the U.S. Approximately ten litres of the hand sanitizer have already been installed in the campus for the advantage of the staff, students and faculty at areas such as Shiru Cafe, meeting halls, faculty lounge and laboratories, among other areas. This increases the probability of people using it which will ultimately help stop the spread of germs and promote good health and hygiene.

The sanitizer has been made by Dr Shivakalyani Adepu and Dr Mudrika Khandelwal. She was a research scholar at the IIT Hyderabad’s Department of Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering. She was assisted by Dr Mudrika Khandelwal, Associate Professor, Department of Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering, IIT Hyderabad. Talking about the ingredients of this hand sanitizer, it is 70 per cent isopropanol with glycerol, polypropylene glycol to raise the viscosity and decrease the volatility so that the sanitizer stays on the skin to allow action, along with lemongrass oil for antimicrobial activity and therapeutic aroma. The 70 per cent IPA solution enters the cell wall, coalesces all proteins, and therefore the microorganism dies.

Approximately one in five people do not wash their hands regularly. Of those who wash their hands, 70 per cent do not use soap. The alcohol-based hand sanitizers finish most of the bacteria, fungi, and stop viruses, present on hands within 30 seconds of applying.

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