At the request of the manufacturer, the scientists of the Thin Film Physics Laboratory at the Centre for Energy Research (EK) conducted research on the effective use of a disinfectant containing silver nanogranules. They used the electron microscope, which is the highest atomic resolution device in Hungary that was purchased from a 2018 VEKOP grant. The results are promising, as it seems public areas and vehicles treated with the disinfectant containing silver nanogranules are safe even during the epidemic.
The Centre for Energy Research has offered the capacities of their research reactor to support virus research. Neutron beams emitted by the reactor can be used to examine the inner structure of viruses, their environment and connected cell membranes on the basis of neutron scattering. Contrary to other diagnostic methods, neutron scattering allows for the structural and functional analysis of units 100 or 1000 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair (i.e. ranging from 0.1 to 1 micrometer). Such tests may therefore provide important information on the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Neutron-spectroscopy is able to follow the movements and deformations of groups in the size range of atoms, from groups composed of a few atoms to those made up of thousands or tens of thousands of atoms. This examination is indispensable for the optimization of diagnostic and therapeutic agents.
