Pesticide-Free Device a
Fatal Attraction for Mosquitoes
Environment and Resource
Management
Originating Technology/ NASA Contribution
Are those pesky mosquitoes getting more entertainment
out of your family picnic than you are? If the
answer is yes, then it is time to reclaim your
backyard with assistance from an unlikely partner.
Nowadays, NASA is developing tools to track and
predict the spread of the West Nile Virus on a
global scale, but several years ago, the Space
Agency carved out some time to collaborate with
an outdoor products manufacturer in order to help
control mosquito populations on a local level.
The technology resulting from this union leveraged
a space-age heat blanket to attract mosquitoes,
which would then be eliminated without the use
of harmful pesticides or chemicals.
Partnership
In 1995, Alvin Wilbanks, of Environmental Products
and Research, Inc., met with Marshall Space Flight
Center’s Technology Transfer Office to discuss
his ideas of developing a mosquito-killing system.
Wilbanks’s proposal for such a product evolved
from nightly rituals of coming home from work and
having to free his house of mosquitoes in order
to protect his newborn daughter. He had been applying
repellents to her, but was apprehensive about what
could happen if she accidentally ingested them
or got them in her eyes.
Prior to meeting with NASA, Wilbanks started looking
into pesticide-free products, only to find that
no such items were available. He knew there had
to be a better way to control mosquitoes without
the use of chemicals, so he asked himself, “What
attracts the mosquito to us?”
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The Mosquito
Killing System was developed with technical assistance
from NASA and is an environmentally safe way
to reduce the mosquito population. |
His first theory was that the mosquito was seeking
blood; he placed blood on a slide as an experiment
to view the mosquito’s behavior. To his astonishment,
the mosquito was not attracted to the blood sample.
He then began to test other methods of attraction,
such as moisture, body scents/pheromones, motion,
and breathing. All of these experiments had poor
results, as there were no increases in the ratio
of capturing and killing the insect. Wilbanks even
tried an off-the-shelf bug light, but after examining
the contents, it was evident that the mosquitoes
were not being drawn by this method. Without giving
up on the bug light unit, Wilbanks removed the
lights and replaced them with a heating element.
The test revealed that most species of mosquitoes
were attracted to the heat emitting from the modified
unit, yet they were not being captured.
He spent the next 3 years determining what temperature
would be most effective and how big the unit should
be in order to achieve the most efficient results.
Other tests were performed to determine effectiveness,
including air flow and wind design. The final analysis
indicated that temperature, size, motion, and elevation
were all determining factors in capturing and killing
mosquitoes. Armed with these facts, Wilbanks was
closing in on the development of his own mosquito-killing
system.
There was a delay in the process, however, as the
mosquitoes were smartening up and detecting the
electrical fields of Wilbanks’s experimental killing
system. It turned out that the electrical fields
were acting as warning signals to the insects,
thus deterring them from investigating further.
Wilbanks decided to alter the unit in order to
conceal the electrical fields but still attract
and kill the mosquitoes. This added other variables
that had to be perfected before the system was
ready to go to market. It was at this point when
Wilbanks submitted a request for technical assistance
to NASA’s Marshall facility.
Marshall engineers suggested a number of improvements
to cut costs and enhance the efficiency of Wilbanks’s
system. The specific areas of assistance included
the difficulties identified with the electrical
fields and issues pertaining to the heat source.
Based on these suggestions, Wilbanks decided to
use a NASA-influenced heat blanket in his system.
This technology simulates body heat and skin to
attract the mosquitoes. Additionally, Marshall
referred Wilbanks to a nonprofit agency that aided
him in developing the prototype mosquito-killing
system as well as the molds used to form the base
and top structure of the product.
After experimenting on 40 different versions, Wilbanks
came up with a mosquito-killing device that met
his
satisfaction. He was granted a patent for his innovation
in 1997, followed by Underwriters Laboratories
(UL) approval in 1999.
Product Outcome
Now owned by Arctic
Products, of Jefferson City,
Missouri, the Mosquito Killing System utilizes
the unique heating source inspired by NASA, along
with carbon dioxide, to lure mosquitoes within
a 1-acre radius. Since mosquitoes’ natural “hunting”
techniques involve heat sensing and carbon dioxide
detection, the Mosquito
Killing System employs
heat and the carbon dioxide to mimic body temperatures
and breathing patterns of humans, livestock, poultry,
and domestic pets. Every
6 to 9 minutes, the killing system cycles through
various temperatures and releases carbon dioxide
to attract
the mosquito.
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How the
Mosquito Killing System works: 1) A photocell
activates the unit at dusk and powers off at
dawn. 2) A heat source mimics the body temperatures
of humans, livestock, poultry, and domestic pets.
3) An automated carbon dioxide release mimics
the breathing of warm-blooded animals. 4) A fan
provides a vacuum source to force the mosquito
through the unit. 5) An electronic grid provides
an electrical charge to safely eliminate the
mosquito. |
Once inside the unit, the mosquito is forced by
a vacuum powered fan into a grid that provides
an electrical charge to safely eliminate the insect.
The remains are then expelled through the bottom
of the unit where they can either be collected
by an attached mesh bag for disposal or returned
naturally to the environment. The Mosquito Killing
System is equipped with an energy efficient photocell
that turns the unit on at dusk, and off at dawn.
(Estimated operational cost is $6 to $8 a month.)
Unlike products that use propane or chemicals,
the Mosquito Killing System is as environmentally
friendly as having an additional tree in the yard,
since it stores carbon dioxide and releases it
back into the atmosphere. The system uses a standard
20-pound carbon dioxide tank—the same tank used
throughout the beverage industry. Carbon dioxide
provides a safe alternative to chemicals and pesticides
found in competing products, because it is nonflammable,
nonexplosive, and nontoxic.
The system captures several times as many mosquitoes
as any other machine or product, according to the
manufacturer. The female mosquito—which feeds on
blood from people, animals, and birds, unlike its
male counterpart—lays an average of 300 eggs at
a time. In essence, for every 1,000 female mosquitoes
eliminated, the mosquito population is actually
reduced by 300,000.
Not only can consumers diminish the local mosquito
population with the Mosquito Killing System, they
can reduce the risk of various diseases vectored
by mosquitoes and provide for a cleaner environment.
In addition, the system will attract and eradicate
other pests such as gnats, biting flies, and “no-see-ums,”
but unlike conventional bug “zappers,” it will
not draw the attention of beneficial insects that
are good for the environment, such as pollinators
and species that feed on plant-eating pests to
help preserve gardens.
From backyard barbecues and ballparks, to stables
and campground get-togethers, the Mosquito Killing
System is ideal for just about any outdoor application.
The Belmont Park Racetrack, in Elmont, New York,
for instance, is using the technology to stave
off mosquitoes from its prize-winning thoroughbred
horses. “There is no acceptable risk when it comes
to introducing chemicals around thoroughbreds,”
claimed John Chilcott, the general foreman of Belmont
Park. “We could use anything
to control mosquitoes, and we chose the [Mosquito
Killing System]. It is environmentally safe and
we are completely satisfied.”
Mosquito Killing System™ is a trademark of Arctic
Products.
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