Developed by Braskem and AlpFilm, the film can inactivate 79.9% of the new coronavirus in three minutes and 99.99% in up to 15 minutes.
A partnership between Brazilian petrochemical company Braskem and PVC film maker AlpFilm, also based in Brazil, has created AlpFilm Protect, a transparent PVC plastic film with silver and silica microparticles capable of inactivating 79.9% of the new coronavirus in three minutes and 99.99% in up to 15 minutes.
Braskem’s vinyl application engineering team supported AlpFilm in developing the formulation that gives rise to the film, maximizing the potential for protection against fungi and bacteria, and achieving virucidal function – in other words, capable of eliminating viruses. In a second step, the plastic film received the addition of silver and silica based on the technology developed and licensed by the São Paulo company Nanox with support from the FAPESP Innovative Research in Small Business Program (PIPE).
According to Brasem, tests to prove the ability of the plastic packaging to eliminate SARS-CoV-2, a virus that causes Covid-19, were conducted by the level 3 biosafety laboratory (NB3) of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences of the University of São Paulo (ICB -USP) and in accordance with ISO 21702: 2019, technical standard for measuring antiviral activity in plastics and other non-porous surfaces.
“Plastic has been a great ally of the population in facing the pandemic of the new coronavirus. PVC solutions enable the production of a series of essential items, ranging from medical and hospital products to packaging, which guarantee food safety, hygiene and cleaning, among others, reinforcing the fight against Covid-19,” said Almir Cotias, director of the vinyls business at Braskem. “The product has existed since 2014 and already had antifungal and bactericidal properties thanks to the presence of silver microparticles, but with the pandemic we submitted it to a series of studies to adapt its composition in order to ensure its antiviral efficacy, especially against the new coronavirus. Faced with the challenges imposed by Covid-19, we decided to turn our attention to research and development of this product evolution for the inactivation of the new coronavirus by contact.”
AlpFilm Protect is already available on the market.
