Better air quality courtesy of researchers from the UG’s Faculty of Chemistry – as many as four awards at the International Intellectual Property, Invention, Innovation and Technology Exposition in Bangkok.

ECO FRESH II, the result of cooperation between the team headed by Prof. Adriana Zaleska-Medynska from the Department of Environmental Technology of the Faculty of Chemistry, the company PHU Dytrych from Łódź and the Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres, was recognised at the International Intellectual Property, Invention, Innovation and Technology Exposition (IPITEx), held in Bangkok, Thailand, between 2-6 February 2019. The exposition is one of the most important events where globally innovative inventions are presented.

ECO FRESH II is a modern device for the effective removal of dangerous volatile organic compounds from the air (including, for example, polycyclic aromatic compounds) as well as cooking oil fumes, NOx, SO2, H2S and harmful microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, fungi, moulds). The device has been designed in order to improve air quality in eating establishments, its main function being the prevention of unpleasant smells, cooking oil fumes and harmful compounds produced through burning, frying and grilling, spreading from the kitchen area (especially from so-called open kitchens).

The inventors: Adriana Zaleska-Medynska from the Faculty of Chemistry of the University of Gdańsk, Witold Dytrych from PHU Dytrych in Łódź as well as Katarzyna Wrześniewska-Tosik, Tomasz Mik and Tomasz Kowalewski from the Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres in Łódź received a total of four awards:

Gold Medal awarded by the National Research Council of Thailand

Special Award presented by the Indonesian Invention and Innovation Promotion Association

Distinction from the Manila Young Investors Association

Special Award from WIPA (World Invention Intellectual Property Associations)

Alongside devices for purifying and disinfecting air in enclosed spaces such as restaurants, kindergartens or schools, the research team from the Department of Environmental Technology at the Faculty of Chemistry  of the University of Gdańsk in cooperation with PHU Dytrych designs installations for purifying air in urban agglomerations, sewage plants and car air conditioning devices.

One of the team’s research projects has received financial support from the UG’s Technology Transfer Centre as part of the Innovation Incubator+ project aimed at providing assistance to pre-implementation work and strengthening cooperation between the academic world and representatives of the business community. The project is being implemented in a consortium comprising the University of Gdańsk, Gdańsk University of Technology, the Medical University of Gdańsk and Gdańsk University of Technology’s SPV – Excento Sp. z o.o.