Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity and the University of Michigan have partnered to develop a tool that could identify the relation the acute respiratory disease syndrome present in COVID-19.
AFRL's Materials and Manufacturing Directorate provided researchers to support IARPA's Molecular Analyzer for Efficient Gas-phase Low-power Interrogation program, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base said Friday.
The resulting product would be able to support civilian, industrial, military and now, COVID-19 assessment activities. MAEGLIN's gas sensor can be used to examine exhaled air from COVID-19 patients.
MAEGLIN originally aimed to produce portable technology that detects nuclear presence, pollution, chemical weapons, drugs and other dangerous materials via ultra-low-power chemical analysis.
The pandemic and MAEGLIN's potential to address the issue prompted AFRL to augment the program to accommodate COVID-19-related applications.
"The technology showed promise for medical applications, and we saw an opportunity to use it for urgent needs during the global pandemic," said Robert Bedford, a researcher with AFRL.
