As Chile’s giant copper mines battle to keep workers healthy in the Covid-19 pandemic, a laboratory in the country is touting the use of tiny specks of the metal to contain the spread among the general population.
Santiago-based Aintech says its products are the first to make use of copper nanoparticles in disinfectants to kill and prevent viruses and bacteria on surfaces. One product is an alcohol spray that can be used on shoes or face masks. The other is for hard surfaces whose effects purportedly last a week.
It’s the latest application for a metal that’s mostly used in wiring but whose ability to kill microorganisms is a selling point for new household and industrial products. Copper is now used to coat everything from gym equipment to cages at salmon farms. Chilean copper producer Codelco has promoted using the metal in hospitals, airports and even socks.