Protective Mask Research Articles

Electrospun Polymethylhydrosiloxane/Poly(lactic acid) Multiscale Nanofiber Membrane with Highly Hydrophobic Interface as Material for Protective Mask Filters

Electrospun Polymethylhydrosiloxane/Poly(lactic acid) Multiscale Nanofiber Membrane with Highly Hydrophobic Interface as Material for Protective Mask Filters

Personal Air-Quality Monitoring with Sensor-Based Wireless Internet-of-Things Electronics Embedded in Protective Face Masks

Personal Air-Quality Monitoring with Sensor-Based Wireless Internet-of-Things Electronics Embedded in Protective Face Masks

Purine-Doped g-C3N4-Modified Fabrics for Personal Protective Masks with Rapid and Sustained Antibacterial Activity.

Protective masks are critical to impeding microorganism transmission but can propagate infection via pathogen buildup and face touching. To reduce this liability, we integrated electrospun photocatalytic graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) nanoflakes into standard surgical masks to confer a self-sanitization capacity. By optimizing the purine/melamine precursor ratio during synthesis, we reduced the g-C3N4 band gap from 2.92 to 2.05 eV, eliciting a 4× increase in sterilizing hydrogen peroxide production under visible light. This narrower band gap enables robust photocatalytic generation of reactive oxygen species from environmental and breath humidity to swiftly eliminate accumulated microbes. Under ambient sunlight, the g-C3N4 nanocomposite mask layer achieved a 97% reduction in the bacterial viability during typical use. Because the optimized band gap also allows photocatalytic activity under shadowless lamp illumination, the self-cleaning functionality could mitigate infection risk from residual pathogens in routine hospital settings. Both g-C3N4 and polycaprolactone demonstrate favorable biocompatibility and biodegradability, making this approach preferable over current commercially available metal-based options. Given the abundance and low cost of these components, this scalable approach could expand global access to reusable self-sanitizing protective masks, serving as a sustainable public health preparedness measure against future pandemics, especially in resource-limited settings.

Impact of Protective Mask Position on Inspired Gas Concentration During Oxygen Supplementation: A Study in Healthy Volunteers

Impact of Protective Mask Position on Inspired Gas Concentration During Oxygen Supplementation: A Study in Healthy Volunteers

Quality Analysis of Matrix Masking of Digital Audio Data

This article considered the guarantee of confidentiality task of audio information transmitted over a packet communication channel. Domain analysis showed, that in most cases cryptographical method used for guarantee of confidentiality of audio information, however, along with them, matrix methods of protective coding used, with implementation on FPGA or DSP processors. These methods, using random matrices, impose additional instrumental errors during decoding. The purpose of the study: is to assess the quality of protective coding ‒ masking of audio data by quasi-orthogonal structured matrices. The proposed method of masking digital audio information by quasi-orthogonal matrices differs from the known ones in predictable results and simplity of implementation. An alternative approach to the classical use of metrics is proposed for evaluating the result of masking. It is based on the analysis of the spectral component of the signal. It is shown that masking with a square Mersenne ‒ Walsh matrix brings digital audio information, presented in the form of a matrix, to a form close in spectrum to white noise. This reliably protects it in the communication channel from unauthorized access. The obtained results showed that the proposed method is promising and suggests the study of the influence of the choice of orthogonal matrix structures and their sizes on the results of masking.

Development of Functional Filter Materials for Virus Protective Face Masks

AbstractWearing face masks during pandemics is an important protective measure against the spreading of virus‐related infectious diseases. Nevertheless, the risk of indirect transmission of virus by handling masks is one of the earliest concerns. This problem can be minimized by supplementing the masks’ textile structure with virus protective coatings. Therefore, in this concept, suitable techniques for manufacturing virus protective filter media should be evaluated. In this study, nonwoven polyamide 6 (PA6) filter material is functionalized with negatively charged linear polyglycerol sulfate (LPGS) as a virus binding functional group. Two coating conditions are investigated in which the direct covalent coating with LPGS has emerged as the optimum coating method, showing no damage to the PA6 nanofiber structure. The uncoated PA6 and LPGS‐coated PA6 filter materials exhibited virus particle filtration efficiencies of 95% and 94% for airborne feline coronavirus, 98% and 86% for airborne equine herpesvirus 1(EHV‐1), respectively. However, the SARS‐CoV‐2 absorption assay in solution indicates that the LPGS coating reduces viral titres up to 71% when incubating with the LPGS‐coated PA6 filter media for one‐hour. Thus, such an effect is not seen for uncoated PA6 materials. These findings confirm the suitability of LPGS coating as a suitable platform for suppression the spreading of viruses in different pandemics.

Bacteria Filtration Efficiency for Different Types of Protective Face Masks

Emerging infectious diseases that we are witnessing in the modern age are among the leading public health concerns. They most often occur in the form of epidemics or pandemics, and they have not been sufficiently researched. Owing to the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the World Health Organization has published various recommendations to prevent the spread of this communicable disease, including a recommendation to wear protective facial masks. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the filtration effectiveness of bacteria, yeasts, and molds on three different commonly and commercially available masks used in children’s educational institutions. In addition, the bacterial content of indoor air bioaerosols was identified. The genera Staphylococcus and Micrococcus were dominant in all samples, whereas bacteria of the genera Bacillus, Acinetobacter, and Corynebacterium were identified at a significantly smaller number. Bacterial, yeast, and mold filtering effectiveness increased from the single-layer cloth mask, which proved to be the least effective, to the surgical mask, to the filtering facepiece type 2 (FFP2) mask. Furthermore, surveys are needed to study the effectiveness of protective measures.

Snapshots of ID Week 2022

Snapshots of ID Week 2022

SoK: Differentially Private Publication of Trajectory Data

Trajectory analysis holds many promises, from improvements in traffic management to routing advice or infrastructure development. However, learning users' paths is extremely privacy-invasive. Therefore, there is a necessity to protect trajectories such that we preserve the global properties, useful for analysis, while specific and private information of individuals remains inaccessible. Trajectories, however, are difficult to protect, since they are sequential, highly dimensional, correlated, bound to geophysical restrictions, and easily mapped to semantic points of interest. This paper aims to establish a systematic framework on protective masking and synthetic-generation measures for trajectory databases with syntactic and differentially private (DP) guarantees, including also utility properties, derived from ideas and limitations of existing proposals. To reach this goal, we systematize the utility metrics used throughout the literature, deeply analyze the DP granularity notions, explore and elaborate on the state of the art on privacy-enhancing mechanisms and their problems, and expose the main limitations of DP notions in the context of trajectories.

Development of a Prototype of a Protective UV-C Half-Face Mask with Implementation of Additive Technology

The authors of this manuscript present development of a prototype protective UV-C half-face mask. The first stage of this study focuses on proposing a UV-C half-face mask design and the second phase investigates the quality of printings, 3D/2D roughness and porousness of three different printed samples of PA12. Development of the protective half-face mask used the non-destructive technology of 3D scanning of the human body by the Ein Scan scanner. As a part of the experiment, three samples were prepared with Sinterit Lisa, EOS Formiga and HP jet fusion printers. SLS and MJF technology were used during the experiment. The experimental observation of the structure of the surface was secured using the Alicona Infinite focus G5 device. The conclusions present the study's results and the authors' recommendations for other developers dealing with the development of the protective face masks.

Removable Pressure-Sensitive Adhesives Based on Acrylic Telomer Syrups

Removable pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSAs) are used in the production of self-adhesive materials such as protective films, masking tapes or biomedical electrodes. This work presents a new and environmentally friendly method of obtaining this type of adhesive materials, i.e., photochemically induced free radical telomerization. Adhesive binders to removable PSAs, i.e., the photoreactive acrylic telomer syrups (ATS) were prepared from n-butyl acrylate, acrylic acid, and 4-acrylooxybenzophenone. Tetrabromomethane (CBr4) or bromotrichloromethane (CBrCl3) were used as the telogens. ATS was modified with unsaturated polybutadiene resin and a radical photoinitiator. Adhesive compositions were coated onto a carrier and UV cross-linked. The effects of the chemical nature of telomers (i.e., terminal Br or Cl atoms) and their molecular weight (K-value), as well as the cross-linking degree on adhesive properties of PSAs, were studied. It was found that with the increase in telogen content in the system, the dynamic viscosity of ATS and K-value of acrylic telomers decrease, and the conversion of monomers increases. CBr4 turned out to be a more effective chain transfer agent than CBrCl3. Moreover, telomers with terminal Br-atoms (7.5 mmol of CBr4), due to slightly lower molecular weights and viscosity, showed a higher photocrosslinking ability (which was confirmed by high cohesion results at 20 and 70 °C, i.e., >72 h). Generally, higher values of the temperature at which adhesive failure occurred were noted for PSAs based on ATS with lower telogen content (7.5 mmol), both CBr4 and CBrCl3. The excellent result for removable PSA was obtained in the case of telomer syrup Br-7.5 crosslinked with a 5 J/cm2 dose of UV-radiation (adhesion ca.1.3 N/25 mm, and cohesion > 72 h).

Filtering Efficiency of Sustainable Textile Materials Applied in Personal Protective Face Mask Production during Pandemic.

The COVID-19 outbreak increased demand for personal protective respirator masks. Textile masks based on cloth materials appeared to be a sustainable, comfortable, and cost-effective alternative available in global communities. In this study, we used laser-based particle counting for mask material qualification to determine the concentration filtering efficiency in general, everyday community use. The efficiencies of eleven different commercially available textile materials were measured in single-, double-, and triple-layer configurations according to their grammage, mesh (XY), and inter-yarn gap. It was found that in the single-layer configurations, most materials were well below the acceptable standards, with a wide variation in filtering efficiency, which ranged from 5% to ~50%. However, when testing the fabrics in two or three layers, the efficiency increased significantly, exceeding or approaching the standard for medical masks. Three layers of natural silk was able to produce a level of filtration efficiency of 84.68%. Two-layered natural silk achieved 70.98%, cotton twill achieved 75.6%, and satin-weave viscose achieved 69.77%. Further options can also be considered in cases where lower filtration is acceptable It was statistically shown that applying a second layer was more significant in terms of overall filtering than increasing the layer count to three. However, layer stacking limited the breathability. The paper presents measurement-based qualitative and quantitative recommendations for future textile applications in face mask manufacturing.

Protective Disposable Face Masks Used During the COVID-19 Pandemic as a Source of Pollutants in the Aquatic Environment – A Study of Short-Term Effects

Protective Disposable Face Masks Used During the COVID-19 Pandemic as a Source of Pollutants in the Aquatic Environment – A Study of Short-Term Effects

Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Notification of Protective Masks to the RAPEX System

Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Notification of Protective Masks to the RAPEX System

Пандемички дискурс у поезији Драгана Хамовића: „Заштитна маска” и „Две хиљаде двaдесета”

The paper discusses elements of pandemic discourse in the poetry of Dragan Hamović within two collections of his poems: Protective Mask (2020) and Two Thousand Twenty (2021). At the centre of this poetry lies the general questioning and concern over the new and (im)possible living conditions to which we as a society are exposed to due to the pandemic of COVID-19. Through a kind of lyrical diary of a bad year, the poet lucidly sees himself and others in the context of the so-called new normality (isolation, quarantine, curfew, state of emergency, masks, vaccines, tests and so on) and the year 2020, as a year of double annihilation (“two zeros”). The focus of the research will be therefore directed towards rethinking and critique of the current socio-historical moment as a moment of crisis at the global level caused by the coronavirus epidemic.

Electrospun Filtering Membrane Designed as Component of Self-Decontaminating Protective Masks

The 2019 coronavirus outbreak and worsening air pollution have triggered the search for manufacturing effective protective masks preventing both particulate matter and biohazard absorption through the respiratory tract. Therefore, the design of advanced filtering textiles combining efficient physical barrier properties with antimicrobial properties is more newsworthy than ever. The objective of this work was to produce a filtering electrospun membrane incorporating a biocidal agent that would offer both optimal filtration efficiency and fast deactivation of entrapped viruses and bacteria. After the eco-friendly electrospinning process, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofibers were stabilized by crosslinking with 1,2,3,4-butanetetracarboxylic acid (BTCA). To compensate their low mechanical properties, nanofiber membranes with variable grammages were directly electrospun on a meltblown polypropylene (PP) support of 30 g/m2. The results demonstrated that nanofibers supported on PP with a grammage of around only 2 g/m2 presented the best compromise between filtration efficiencies of PM0.3, PM0.5, and PM3.0 and the pressure drop. The filtering electrospun membranes loaded with benzalkonium chloride (ADBAC) as a biocidal agent were successfully tested against E. coli and S. aureus and against human coronavirus strain HCoV-229E. This new biocidal filter based on electrospun nanofibers supported on PP nonwoven fabric could be a promising solution for personal and collective protection in a pandemic context.

Prolonged Use of Protective Masks Induced Facial Skin Injury in Primary Healthcare Workers during COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

COVID-19 transmission necessitates health workers to use personal protective equipment (PPE), especially protective masks when delivering medical services. Long-term use of protective masks might cause facial skin injuries. Our study aims to provide a systematic review to explore the phenomenon and incidence of protective masks induced facial skin injuries in primary healthcare workers. This systematic review was created by obtaining articles from the PubMed database and the Cochrane library from 2020 to 2021, using the keywords "Face skin injury," "Wearing protective masks for a long time," and "Wearing protective masks and facial skin disorders." Inclusion criteria were studies that fully report the phenomenon of wearing protective masks and the incidence of facial skin injuries. One hundred and sixty-eight studies were obtained, but only 14 articles matched the inclusion criteria with more than 10,430 participants from different countries that covered various characteristics of facial skin injuries in primary healthcare workers. The findings obtained dominant characteristics of health workers who experienced facial skin injuries: women, N95 masks, and daily N95 coverage for more than 6 hours (p<0.05). Facial skin injuries are often seen after using protective face masks, as it is used for an extended period as part of a defensive effort during work. Therefore, measures that protect health workers from COVID-19 and prevent health workers from potential injuries of protective masks must be taken into account.

A Review on 3D Augmented Reality Design Technique and Inward Leakage Testing on Protective Face Mask

Protective face mask identification is essential today to users as it is a prominent protective wearable to shield from being infected by Covid-19 viruses. Protective face masks consist of layers of fibers that can capture large respiratory droplets and microscopic particles such as viruses or dust. Thus, mask filtration efficiency results depend on the materials used for each layer. Detail about mask description and efficiency are still anonymous to users, which is vital in this COVID-19. Therefore, this paper reviews designing 3D augmented reality for the protective mask with its detail parameter and mask sizing recommendation on android mobile. About 73 articles on the protective face mask, 3D augmented reality modeling, masks inward leakage testing, breathing resistance, and measuring faces have been reviewed. The result examines the existing protective face mask, inward leakage testing parameter, breathing resistance parameters, 3D modeling techniques, mobile applications, and the application used for measuring faces. The identified result shows six recent and familiar masks with 8% of arithmetic mean for inward leakage testing. The best flow efficiency is determined a 0.3 Microns bigger than 95%. The result also shows a detailed parameter for inward leakage testing in terms of inhalation resistance and flow rate. The comparison for 3D AR parameters is identified for application type, evaluated parameter, technical support parameter, AR platform, and software. This research is significant for developing AR mobile applications that ease and transparency information to the community for safety and health issues in Malaysia.

Ah, Wilderness!

Ah, Wilderness!

Activity and Usability Evaluation of Alternative Protective Face Mask Designs

This research aimed to evaluate the usability of three alternative protective face mask designs from the clinical perspective. In a remote study, dental students (n=38) with experience wearing N95 FFRs participated in a randomized wear trial with simulated activities to measure mask performance. A Likertscale survey instrument was developed to examine conditions of discomfort, fit stability, wear efficiency, and speech intelligibility. Survey results indicated the KN95 mask demonstrated the highest overall mask usability, followed by MNmask v2, and MNmask v1. While participants found MNmask v1 uncomfortable, the stability was rated highest during a head up and down activity ( M=3.54). Here, the KN95 mask had a lower rating ( M=3.36), revealing potential issues with a loose fit. MNmask v2 showed overall improvement from MNmask v1, but revealed complications with the paracord bands. The findings from this study may be applied broadly in improving mask performance and usability in protective face mask designs.