Graphene Mosquito Repellent: New Protective Methods Against Mosquitos

Probably, you haven’t heard about the trending “wonder material” – graphene. Graphene is the world’s most robust material, and it is equally very light and flexible. Many scientists, researchers, and companies have taken time to exploit the properties of graphene; hence, it has been discovered that graphene possesses a lot of unique features that can be utilized and mixed with other materials to create robust, reliable products for humans.

For a long time now, the world has been battling with malaria – a sickness that is believed to result from mosquito bites. However, it seems a failsafe solution has surfaced, thanks to the latest discovery of graphene mosquito repellent – a protective fabric that can prevent humans from mosquito bites; thus, protecting humans from contracting malaria, and other diseases caused by mosquitoes.

Results from an NIH-funded project show that graphene can be used in the production of insect repellant and protective clothing.

Graphene Mosquito Repellant

Particularly, an Aedes Mosquito can transmit the following diseases – chikungunya, Zika, and dengue. A department in the NIH – National Institutes of Health organization, which handles environmental sciences (NIEHS – National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences), has discovered that a novel graphene-based film can repel disease-carrying mosquitos. The research was carried out at the research center of Brown University. Henry Heather (Ph. D), a health scientist, says that “These findings could lead to new protective methods against mosquitos, without the environmental or human health effects of other chemical-based repellants.”

The NIEHS research also pointed out that dry graphene films prevent mosquitos’ from sensing the human skin and provides a tough obstruction that mosquitoes can’t bite through. Robert Hurt (Ph. D), a director at the Superfund Research Program at Brown University, states that – “We set out imagining that graphene film would act as a mechanical barrier, but after observing the mosquitos’ behavior, we began to suspect they were not interested in biting.”

How Graphene Is Used To Produce Clothes That Repel Mosquitoes

Previous research and studies have shown how graphene could be used in the textile industry for fabric production. These fabrics that are made from graphene-based materials pose a lot of features, which include resistance to bacteria and viruses.

However, this recent research shows that graphene film is the actual material that acts as insect-proof. According to the research findings, when mosquitoes land on the dry graphene film, the mosquitoes didn’t try to bite because they didn’t sense human skin or sweat. Thus, it is suspected that using graphene films, it is possible to create protective fabrics that can save humans from mosquito bites.

What’s The Essence of This Research?

Mosquitos carry a lot of deadly infectious viruses, and these diseases are capable of killing humans. In fact, the world has suffered millions of death from Yellow Fever, a disease linked with mosquito bites. Other deadly infections carried by mosquitoes include West Nile and Zika, which can as well lead to disability of people.

The results from this research hint a relief and a possible way to stop the spread of mosquito-related diseases.