Doorknobs, handrails and shopping trolleys should be coated in copper to stop the spread of the coronavirus, scientists have said.
Researchers found that the virus survived on copper for four hours, because of the metal’s antibacterial properties. In contrast the virus was detected on steel and plastic after 72 hours, and on cardboard after 24 hours.
William Keevil, a senior microbiologist at the University of Southampton, said the UK had some “catching-up to do” when it came to using copper.
Polish buses had been fitted with copper “grab rails”, he said, while at airports in Chile and Brazil immigration kiosks were copper-plated and gyms in America had covered barbells and other equipment with the metal.
“Door handles, push pipes on doors and stair rails in