Supertowel - FAQs

SupertowelTM – FAQ

This document is designed to answer common questions humanitarians may have when procuring the Supertowel. It summarises current evidence and learning about the product and will be updated on a regular basis.

WHAT IS THE SUPERTOWEL?

The Supertowel is designed to be an alternative to handwashing with soap for contexts where water and soap are scarce. It is a product designed and developed by Real Relief and partners.

WHAT ARE THE MAIN BENEFITS OF THE SUPERTOWEL?

-  Scientifically proven efficacy as handwashing tool
-  Easy access to handwashing everywhere
-  Does not require handwashing stations
-  No soap required and only very little water
-  Low cost
-  Well accepted by users
-  Seems to improve frequency of handwashing among users
HOW WAS SUPERTOWEL DEVELOPED?
Supertowel was developed in response to a funding call announced by the Humanitarian Innovation Fund in 2017. The call asked applicants to ‘reimagine soap’ and to make hand hygiene more feasible in humanitarian contexts. With funding from the Humanitarian Innovation Fund and USAID's Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance we have been developing and evaluating the product over the last four years. During this time, we have conducted research and design work with a range of humanitarian and academic partners including the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), KET’s Scientific Research Centre, Stanford University, Tufts University, Lancon Environmental, Boston University, Biotech Testing Services, the Royal College of Art, The Danish Refugee Council, Action Contre la Faim (ACF), ZOA and the British Red Cross.

 

HOW DO YOU USE SUPERTOWEL FOR HAND CLEANING?

The Supertowel is made from a piece of microfibre cloth which has been treated with a permanent antimicrobial coating. Users 1⁄2should dip the cloth in water, wring it out, and then wipe the cloth on their hands, following similar steps to handwashing as with soap. Once damp, the Supertowel can be carried with a person and re-used multiple times throughout the day.

DOES THE SUPERTOWEL NEED SOAP OR DETERGENT TO WORK?

No. Supertowel will work without soap when used as a hand cleaning product. The Supertowel may however get visibly dirty after having been used several times. It could increase the appeal of the product and frequency of use if the Supertowel is washed at regular intervals.

HOW MUCH WATER DOES SUPERTOWEL REQUIRE FOR HAND CLEANING?

Based on our laboratory studies hand washing for 15 seconds with bar soap uses approximately 760 ml of water. Handwashing for 60 seconds with the same soap consumes about 1,650 ml. The Supertowel consumes an average of 52 ml when soaked and then wrung so that it remains damp. With this water it can be used for the next 3-5 hours while damp. In settings where water is scarce, we commonly observe populations having to prioritise water for tasks other than handwashing (e.g. bathing, laundry, drinking and cooking)1,2. Being able to save this much water on a routine behaviour like handwashing can make a big difference to populations.

HOW SHOULD SUPERTOWEL BE USED OUTSIDE THE HOME?

Since Supertowel is so mobile it can easily be taken with a person when he is leaving the house and are often particularly useful for hand cleaning in public environments where handwashing facilities are not always available. In some settings the Supertowel has been distributed in a small waterproof bag so that it can be stored while damp and outside the house. In other settings people prefer to drape the towel around their shoulders to keep them cool in hot temperatures.

CAN THE SUPERTOWEL BE USED WITH GREY WATER OR SURFACE WATER IN LAKES AND RIVERS?

Yes. If acceptable to populations, the Supertowel can be dipped into contaminated water prior to its use for hand cleaning. The antimicrobial properties of the Supertowel will kill anything in the water leaving the Supertowel clean for handwashing. In laboratory tests we artificially contaminated water with non- pathogenic E. coli to a level (2,000 cfu/100 mL) which is double the acceptable level of contamination for handwashing3. Under these conditions both handwashing with soap and hand cleaning with the Supertowel were shown to be equally efficacious.

HOW SHOULD THE SUPERTOWEL BE MAINTAINED?

If Supertowel becomes visibly dirty or smelly it can be washed in clean or soapy water. The Supertowel can be cleaned with all other laundry and does not require special cleaning products or processes. We recommend soaking the towel, then gently rubbing it with soap and water, squeezing it and hanging it to dry in fresh air.

SHOULD I DRY THE SUPERTOWEL AFTER USE?

Drying is not necessary for Supertowel to be efficacious. The Supertowel will disinfect itself while wet. We recommend line drying the towel.

WILL THE SUPERTOWEL STILL WORK IF IT GETS OILY OR MUDDY?

Yes. In laboratory-based tests we artificially contaminated the Supertowel with mud and oil and found that it was as effective as a clean Supertowel4. However, when the Supertowel becomes physically dirty it could create barriers to use because it will be less desirable.

HOW DOES THE SUPERTOWEL REMOVE AND KILL PATHOGENS?

The Supertowel is designed to effectively remove pathogens from hands and then kill them. It does this through two modes of action:

  • The specially designed microfiber fabric is responsible for removing germs from hands and other surfaces. Microfibers are particularly efficacious at removing pathogens because they are comprised of thousands of individual fibres which increase the contact area and storage capacity of the fabric (see illustration 1)

  • The antimicrobial treatment that is applied to the microfibre will kill pathogens that have been removed from the hands or surface. The antimicrobial treatment is non-toxic and is bonded to the microfibre meaning that it does not come off on someone’s hands during use. The antimicrobial treatment used on the Supertowel is not new and is used in many other applications from inhibition of smell in sportswear and apparel to prevention of biofilm creation in human implants. The antimicrobial treatment uses positively charged carbon chains which are fixed to the microfibres. Pathogens are attracted to this positive charge but upon contact the carbon chains disrupt the outer cell wall of the pathogen, thereby killing it.

IS THE SUPERTOWEL EFFICACIOUS AGAINST VIRUSES?

In theory, the antimicrobial treatment on the Supertowel, is efficacious against incapsulated or enveloped viruses5 such as SARS CoV-2. Recent studies at Tufts University have investigated the virucidal efficacy of Supertowel after 15 min of contact time. Results are preliminary and unpublished, but it seems that the Supertowel and the other antimicrobial surface tested, are ineffective at killing SARS-CoV-2. On-going studies at Stanford University, is elaborating on the tests performed by Tufts and further investigating whether the Supertowel is indeed efficacious against SARS CoV-2 in practical application.

HOW LONG DOES THE SUPERTOWEL LAST FOR?

We estimate that a Supertowel will last for 12 months, but it is highly dependent on the intensity of use. This estimate is based on two studies:

  1. The first study is a laboratory wash test. In this test the efficacy of Supertowel is assessed when new, showing strong bactericidal efficacy – log10 reduction > 4 meaning >99,99% reduction, the Supertowel were then repeatedly machine washed. After 100 washes they found the Supertowel could still reduce bacteria by >80%6.

  2. The second test was a natural experiment. Action Contre la Faim distributed the Supertowels as part of hygiene kits distributed within an internal displacement camp in Northern Nigeria. A small sample of towels was collected at 3, 6 and 9 months. These were sent to a laboratory in India where pathogen kill tests were performed. This study is ongoing but initial results indicate that the towels remain efficacious at 3 and 6 months.

Replacing Supertowel after 6-12 months is likely to be necessary as by this time, they may be visually dirty or torn and this could affect the desirability and use of the product.

HOW MUCH TIME DOES IT TAKE TO EFFECTIVELY CLEAN HANDS WITH THE SUPERTOWEL?

We have performed several laboratory-based studies to assess the efficacy of the Supertowel when used for different durations. Just like handwashing with soap, the Supertowel will be more effective the longer it is used for. In general, we would recommend hand cleaning with the Supertowel for 30 seconds. When used for 60 seconds we typically see a log10 reduction in pathogens of 4.11, when used for 30 seconds we see a log10 reduction of 3.50 and when used for 15 seconds we see a log10 reduction of 2.71. These tests were based on non-pathogenic E. coli.

IS THE SUPERTOWEL AS EFFECTIVE AS SOAP?

Our laboratory studies have shown that the Supertowel is more effective at removing non-pathogenic E. coli from the hands of volunteers than soap and water. These results are based on the European Standard (EN 1499) for testing hand cleaning products and are true when hand cleaning with soap or the Supertowel is practiced for 60 seconds or 30 seconds4,7. However, when explaining the efficacy of the product to populations we recommend that you say that the Supertowel is as effective as hand washing with soap and should be considered as an alternative when soap and water are scarce. The Supertowel is not designed to be completely replacing soap and it is important that people understand that handwashing with soap remains one of the most effective ways to reduce disease transmission.