For Release:      Immediate – July 20, 2020
Contact:             Timothy W. Scee II, Public Affairs Specialist
                            (315) 792-7307 | sceet@sunypoly.edu

ALBANY and UTICA, NY – SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) announced today it has been awarded a grant from SUNY to allow Assistant Professor of Engineering Technology Dr. Iulian Gherasoiu, Associate Professor of Nanoengineering Dr. Harry Efstathiadis, and Associate Professor of Nanobioscience Dr. Michael Fasullo, to create an innovative solid-state face mask air filter underpinned by ongoing, collaborative research.

“I am extremely proud our faculty members who received this award, which will support SUNY Poly research as a force for good during this COVID-19 pandemic through the development of novel personal protective equipment,” SUNY Poly Interim Dean of the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering Dr. André Melendez.

“I commend this SUNY Poly faculty research team on their efforts to establish a new method to engineer PPE so that those who may one day use this new filter can better protect themselves—and potentially others—against COVID-19,” said SUNY Poly Interim Dean of the College of Engineering Dr. Michael Carpenter.

The award will enable continued research on the air filter device designed to inactivate SARS-COV-2 virus particles upon contact using battery-powered technology.

“We are encouraged by the receipt of this award that opens the path for inter-disciplinary collaboration, allowing us to materialize a concept that we hope will contribute to the increased safety of those wearing face coverings and to the mitigation of the challenges posed by the disruption of the critical equipment supply chain,” Dr. Gherasoiu said.

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About SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly)

SUNY Poly is New York’s globally recognized, high-tech educational ecosystem. SUNY Poly offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in the emerging disciplines of nanoscience and nanoengineering, as well as cutting-edge nanobioscience programs at its Albany campus, and undergraduate and graduate degrees in technology, including engineering, cybersecurity, computer science, and the engineering technologies; professional studies, including business, communication, and nursing; and arts and sciences, including natural sciences, mathematics, humanities, and social sciences at its Utica campus; thriving athletic, recreational, and cultural programs, events, and activities complement the campus experience. As the world’s most advanced, university-driven research enterprise, SUNY Poly boasts billions of dollars in high-tech investments and hundreds of corporate partners since its inception. For information visit www.sunypoly.edu.