As detailed in an article published in the journal Materials Today Physics, the "catch and kill" device successfully killed 99.8 percent of aerosolized SARS-CoV-2 — the Wuhan coronavirus responsible for COVID-19 — in a single pass through its filter.

The device, which was designed by Zhifeng Ren, the director of the Texas Center for Superconductivity at UH and Monzer Hourani, CEO of the Houston-based medical real estate development firm Medistar, also killed 99.9 percent of Bacillus anthracis, the bacterium that causes the deadly anthrax disease.

A filter that can kill the coronavirus by heating it up

According to the researchers involved in its creation, the device can be used in airplanes, offices, schools and cruise ships to help stop the spread of the coronavirus that is still ravaging many countries around the world. (Related: Scientists: Face masks reduce risk of coronavirus infections by 65 percent.)

"Its ability to help control the spread of the virus could be very useful for society," Ren said.

As mentioned in the study, the researchers designed the device based on several findings regarding the virus, specifically, that it can remain in the air for about three hours but cannot survive temperatures above 70 C, or about 158 F.