Canada-wide Research Network Based at Concordia Making Work Surfaces Safer for Frontline Staff Using Antiviral Metallic Spray Coating Materials

Copper and titanium oxide spray coatings can help slow the spread of COVID-19.

The Green-SEAM (Surface Engineering for Advanced Manufacturing) Network based at Concordia is stepping up to promote antiviral metallic and ceramic coatings as a way to slow the transmission of the virus. “Copper and titanium oxide, we know, are active in killing bacteria and viruses, so they are effective materials to spray on surfaces to fight the spread of COVID-19,” notes Christian Moreau, director of Green-SEAM and Canada Research Chair in Surface Engineering. “We have a unique network of experts in surface engineering from 11 universities across Canada, 14 industrial companies and government laboratories including the National Research Council who specialize in coating materials.”

Recent work at the University of Toronto by professor and Green-SEAM member Javad Mosthaghimi has demonstrated the benefit of the copper coatings on hospital waiting-room chair armrests.

For the past five years, experts at the Gina Cody School have been tailoring the nano-sized structure of titanium oxide coatings to optimize their photocatalytic and filtration properties that can now be deployed for their antibacterial and antiviral capabilities.