THE CHEMISTRY OF WASHING HANDS WITH SOAP AND THE USE OF HAND SANITIZER, AS MEANS OF PREVENTING THE INFECTION AND SPREAD OF COVID-19

Abstract

For now, there is no known cure for COVID-19 a novel contagious coronavirus disease, which broke out in 2019, and has continued to spread primarily between people through respiratory droplets from an infected individual due to sneezing or coughing and touching of infected surfaces. Therefore, maintaining proper hand washing and respiratory hygiene plays important roles in the fight against the spread of COVID-19. This paper seeks to look at the chemistry behind washing of hands with soap and the use of hand sanitizers as means of curbing the infection and its spread. The prevention
guidelines reeled out by the World Health Organisation (WHO), demands the frequent washing of hands for nothing less than 20 seconds under running water or the use hand sanitizers amongst others In Olabisi Onabanjo University, (75%) alcohol-basedhand sanitizer-OOUTIZER (WHO protocol) and OOU liquid hand wash soap (standard protocol) were prepared by the Department of Chemical Sciences for easy access by the University community. By this, the Department ensured that hand sanitizer to be used as a preventive measure was original. In conclusion, from the certainty of materials used and the tests carried out, OOUTIZER produced is of good quality and suitable not just for the University community but also for the general public. The production of OOU liquid soap ensures the availability of soap for regular hand washing in the University. The production of both items from the Department of Chemical Sciences Laboratories is cost effective enabling the University to save cost