Inter-laboratory Comparison between Particle and Bacterial Filtration Efficiencies of Medical Face Masks in the COVID-19 Context

Fouqueau, Axel; Pourchez, Jérémie; Leclerc, Lara; Peyron, Aurélien; Montigaud, Yoann; Verhoeven, Paul; Macé, Tatiana; Bescond, A.; Thomas, Dominique; Charvet, Augustin; Ghijseling, Mathieu; Hars, Pauline; Polyn, Franck; Gaie-Levrel, François

doi:10.4209/aaqr.220252

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Each sample is conditioned at a temperature of 21 ± 5 °C and a relative humidity of 85 ± 5% for at least 4 hours to achieve atmospheric equilibrium before testing. 29…”

Section: Bfe Testing Protocolmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bacterial Filtration Efficiency

Stevina,

Tjampakasari

2024

JCMID

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Background: The specifications of medical masks are different from those of non-medical masks although they may appear similar. Currently, the Indonesian Government through the Ministry of Health has made efforts to tighten supervision of the quality of medical mask products circulating in the community. Bacterial Filtration Efficiency (BFE) testing is one of the requirements for medical masks to obtain circulation permit from the Indonesian Ministry of Health. Medical masks can be considered good if they have a minimum bacterial filtration efficiency of 95%. If the percentage of BFE result is greater, then the ability of the mask to filter bacteria is also greater. This review aims to provide information on the performance of various types of medical masks through BFE testing and the relationship with the characteristics of the materials used. Method: Relevant articles were obtained from PubMed, Science Direct, Research Gate, Google Scholar, and springer databases and then filtered. Sixteen articles were reviewed and included in this study to achieve the study objective. Result: There are various types of medical masks including surgical masks and N-95 respirator masks. One of the requirements for medical masks is the ability to filter or (BFE) test. Factors that affect the filtration ability of masks include the type of material used and the method of making the mask. Conclusion: Testing the filtration efficiency of medical masks can be done through the Bacterial Filtration Efficiency (BFE) test. Good medical masks must have a minimum bacterial filtration efficiency of 95%.

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“…Each sample is conditioned at a temperature of 21 ± 5 °C and a relative humidity of 85 ± 5% for at least 4 hours to achieve atmospheric equilibrium before testing. 29…”

Section: Bfe Testing Protocolmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bacterial Filtration Efficiency

Stevina,

Tjampakasari

2024

JCMID

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“…Also, the relative pressure drops measured were found in the three-test to be comparable to or lower than the limit value required for the FFP3 (~3.0 mbar), thus indicating that a low air flow resistance occurs in the fabric, making breathing comfortable for the wearers. Several studies reported that a positive correlation occurs between BFE and PFE, and a slight difference observed in the assessment of the filtration performance of face masks between these two methods is mainly due to the utilization of a different aerosol size distribution [87,96,97]. The aerosol generated for the PFE test is composed of monodisperse particles, which are characterized by a diameter of ~0.6 µm.…”

Section: Filtration Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unlike PFE protocol, the mean particle size of ~3.0 µm imposed by the BFE method is obtained as an average estimate of the total count of the six stages of the aerosol cascade impactor, which is characterized by a wide granulometric range of 0.6-7 µm. Since all particles within this range are considered in the estimation of the BFE, a transmission of particles with sizes below 3.0 µm, even if they are a small amount of the total generated aerosol, through the tested filter can create a significant decrease in the BFE [96,97]. It is important to note that the value of BFE measured for the PVDF-HFP membrane was equal at least to ~99%, thus indicating a constant filtration through all the granulometric range, and also for particles smaller than 3.0 µm.…”

Section: Filtration Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

Upscaling of Electrospinning Technology and the Application of Functionalized PVDF-HFP@TiO2 Electrospun Nanofibers for the Rapid Photocatalytic Deactivation of Bacteria on Advanced Face Masks

Cimini,

Borgioni,

Passarini

et al. 2023

Polymers

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In recent years, Electrospinning (ES) has been revealed to be a straightforward and innovative approach to manufacture functionalized nanofiber-based membranes with high filtering performance against fine Particulate Matter (PM) and proper bioactive properties. These qualities are useful for tackling current issues from bacterial contamination on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) surfaces to the reusability of both disposable single-use face masks and respirator filters. Despite the fact that the conventional ES process can be upscaled to promote a high-rate nanofiber production, the number of research works on the design of hybrid materials embedded in electrospun membranes for face mask application is still low and has mainly been carried out at the laboratory scale. In this work, a multi-needle ES was employed in a continuous processing for the manufacturing of both pristine Poly (Vinylidene Fluoride-co-Hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP) nanofibers and functionalized membrane ones embedded with TiO2 Nanoparticles (NPs) (PVDF-HFP@TiO2). The nanofibers were collected on Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) nonwoven spunbond fabric and characterized by using Scanning Electron Microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX), Raman spectroscopy, and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) analysis. The photocatalytic study performed on the electrospun membranes proved that the PVDF-HFP@TiO2 nanofibers provide a significant antibacterial activity for both Staphylococcus aureus (~94%) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (~85%), after only 5 min of exposure to a UV-A light source. In addition, the PVDF-HFP@TiO2 nanofibers exhibit high filtration efficiency against submicron particles (~99%) and a low pressure drop (~3 mbar), in accordance with the standard required for Filtering Face Piece masks (FFPs). Therefore, these results aim to provide a real perspective on producing electrospun polymer-based nanotextiles with self-sterilizing properties for the implementation of advanced face masks on a large scale.

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Hybrid structured silk-rPET nanotechnical cloth for advanced air purification

Hossain,

Shahid

2024

Discov Appl Sci

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Air pollution has become a significant global issue due to its detrimental environmental and human health effects. In this study, a novel approach was taken to address these challenges by developing a recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) nano-coated silk technical cloth embedded with green-synthesized silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using a solution electrospinning technique. The filtration performance of the developed material was assessed through particle filtration efficiency (PFE) tests, while differential pressure (DP) tests were conducted to evaluate pressure drop. SEM, FTIR, tensile, antibacterial, radiative heat barrier performance, and moisture management properties of the developed samples were also performed. Maximum 96.58% of filtration performance was observed with corresponding low differential pressures of 29.1 Pa/cm2; maximum tensile force and elongation% were 157.47 N and 15.32%, respectively of the developed samples. FTIR analysis confirmed the presence of silk, rPET, sodium alginate, and AgNPs in the developed sample. Antibacterial assays demonstrated inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coli (E. coli). Moisture management property revealed water penetration resistance and radiative heat barrier testing showed good barrier performance. These results make the promising potential of the developed material as an advanced air filter. Graphical Abstract

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Inter-laboratory Comparison between Particle and Bacterial Filtration Efficiencies of Medical Face Masks in the COVID-19 Context

Cited by 4 publications

References 23 publications

Bacterial Filtration Efficiency

Bacterial Filtration Efficiency

Upscaling of Electrospinning Technology and the Application of Functionalized PVDF-HFP@TiO2 Electrospun Nanofibers for the Rapid Photocatalytic Deactivation of Bacteria on Advanced Face Masks

Hybrid structured silk-rPET nanotechnical cloth for advanced air purification

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