Battelle, the operating entity for the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to support front-line healthcare workers as they face critical shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE).
The Battelle CCDS Critical Care Decontamination SystemTM is now operating at Battelle’s West Jefferson, Ohio facility under the EUA and is capable of decontaminating up to 80,000 respirator masks per system each day using concentrated, vapor phase hydrogen peroxide (VPHP). The respirator masks are exposed to the validated concentration level for 2.5 hours to decontaminate biological contaminates, including SARS-CoV-2. Battelle CCDS can decontaminate the same respirator mask up to 20 times without degrading the mask’s performance. Further systems are currently being manufactured and deployed around the US.
A small group of staff that normally support the NEON project from Boulder, CO and other NEON locations around the country have volunteered to support the operation of Battelle CCDSTM where needed. More information on Battelle CCDSTM can be found at this link, including data sheets, FDA documentation, instructions for healthcare facilities and more.
Related Update April 8, 2020: California plans to sanitize 80,000 masks a day for health workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic using the CCDS system from defense company Battelle.
