{"id":88932,"date":"2018-07-18T16:29:49","date_gmt":"2018-07-18T20:29:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=88932"},"modified":"2025-06-17T14:35:56","modified_gmt":"2025-06-17T18:35:56","slug":"ucf-alumni-developing-self-heating-blankets-to-save-babies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/ucf-alumni-developing-self-heating-blankets-to-save-babies\/","title":{"rendered":"UCF Alumni Developing Self-Heating Blankets to Save Babies"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two UCF alumni are in the process of developing a self-heating blanket that will protect infants from hypothermia in low- and middle-income regions, increasing their chances of survival.<\/p>\n

Ajay Karakoti \u201910PhD<\/strong> and Satyanarayana Kuchibhatla \u201908PhD<\/strong> received a grant of more than $75,000 to continue their development of a non-electric blanket, which is made entirely of ecofriendly and nontoxic materials and heats independent of any outside source.<\/p>\n

\u201cImagine a baby born prematurely somewhere in rural India needing to be transferred to a specialty clinic in a nearby town. How can you keep a baby warm during transport for 2-4 hours when you don\u2019t have access to an incubator?\u201d Kuchibhatla says. \u201cAddressing this need is the crux of this innovation.\u201d<\/p>\n

How It Works<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Their lab experience as doctoral students in the materials science and engineering program under UCF Professor Sudipta Seal provided the groundwork for the air-activated heating technology used for creating a warm blanket for newborn children. While in the lab, they were exposed to the challenges posed by corrosion \u2014 the deterioration of metal when exposed to air and moisture.<\/p>\n

By harnessing the heat that is generated in the corrosion process, they found a way to turn those challenges into something positive.<\/p>\n

\u201cUltimately, it\u2019s that heat that saves lives.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cFor our blanket, we deliberately create an environment for controlled corrosion. Although the actual corrosion process is slow, it can be accelerated by addition of catalysts to harness the heat that is generated as a byproduct,\u201d Karakoti says. \u201cUltimately, it\u2019s that heat that saves lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

The packaged blanket begins heating as soon as the package is opened. The researchers expect the cost to be less than $25 and they aim to have full-size prototypes ready by the end of the year.<\/p>\n

The grant came from Grand Challenges Canada, which is funded by the national government and other partners. The program announced recently that it is investing in 100 new ideas to address persistent challenges in women\u2019s and children\u2019s health.<\/p>\n

Protecting Preemies<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Karakoti and Kuchibhatla established their applied-research and product-development company, Parisodhana Technologies, in India in 2016. Their vision is to develop platform technologies that will lead to multiple products for betterment of human life, specifically in the developing world.<\/p>\n

Compared to existing warming blankets that reflect body heat, the Parisodhana blanket generates heat on its own, helping infants who do not have enough body fat to generate sufficient heat for themselves.<\/p>\n

Even in subtropical climates, hypothermia and temperature-control problems are one of several complications associated with preterm births (babies generally born before 37 weeks). According to the World Health Organization, more than 60 percent of preterm births occur in Africa and South Asia, and Karakoti and Kuchibhatla\u2019s home country of India tops the list with the greatest number of preterm births.<\/p>\n

The WHO also says that in low-income settings, half of the babies born at or earlier than 32 weeks (two months early) die due to a lack of feasible, cost-effective care, such as warmth, breastfeeding support, and basic care for infections and breathing difficulties. In high-income countries, almost all of these babies survive.<\/p>\n