LANSING, Mich. — Delta Dental has stepped in to lend a hand in the effort to decontaminate n-95 masks.
Earlier this month, MSU Extension, the MSU College of Engineering and Sparrow Hospital came up with a process to decontaminate the masks so they could be reused. The process involved baking the masks in commercial ovens. Doing this allows them to potentially be used up to 20 times.
"The industrial oven allows you to put a mask on the back of the spiral oven and it rotates it all the way up to the top. So, we cook it at 158 degrees Fahrenheit for exactly 30 minutes," said Alan Vierling the President of Sparrow Hospital.
Delta Dental has provided $25,000 for the efforts. It is the first local business to get involved. The project is hoping to expand even more, but in order to do that, more training, staff and resources are needed which may cost up to $1 million.
The decontaminated respirators are expected to be distributed in the next few weeks. They'll go to areas with the greatest need such as hospitals in southeast Michigan and the Greater Lansing area.
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