New Application of LED Street Lights: Mosquito Catcher Artifact
BENWEI LED Lighting: Recently, a research team led by associate professor Chong Wen Tong from the University of Malaysia has developed a hybrid energy LED outdoor street light. The most amazing thing is that this LED outdoor street light is said to be able to imitate human odor to trap mosquitoes.
According to Asia Research News, in order to prevent the spread of dengue virus, a mosquito-borne disease in Malaysia, Chong Wen Tong, an associate professor at the School of Engineering and Mechanical Engineering, University of Malaysia, has developed an LED outdoor street light with a built-in mosquito-killing trap. Capable of charging via solar cells and wind energy systems.
"The mosquito traps trap mosquitoes by mimicking human-related odors and making full use of their sensory abilities," The Guardian reported, citing Chong Wen Tong.
Since mosquitoes are easily attracted to UV lamps, a UV lamp and suction fan are integrated into the system. The UV light reacts with titanium dioxide (TiO2) coated on the trap light to produce human exhaled carbon dioxide through a photocatalytic reaction. Due to the vacuum created by the fan, the trapped mosquitoes are sucked to the bottom by the fan and cannot escape.
Additionally, to prevent shading and optimize energy harvesting, photovoltaic panels are often placed on top of the system. While the longitudinal axis is the Omni-directional Guide Vane (ODGV), the wind power augmentation system creates a shrunken flow effect to increase the wind speed. Since the wiring is placed on top of the lamp, it can also be used in flood prone areas.
As part of the pilot project, eight LED mosquito trapping street lights have been installed on the campus of the University of Malaya and Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, according to the Guardian. The first version of this LED mosquito trapping street light is ready for commercialization, and the research team has signed a licensing agreement with a private company.
Dengue cases have risen by 29% in 2017, with more than 96,000 reported cases, according to statistics compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO).
The death toll from dengue fever rose to 482 in January-November 2015, compared with 262 in the same period in 2016, according to the Malay Mail.
