Due to the widespread emergence of COVID-19, face masks have become a common tool for reducing transmission risk between people, increasing the need for sterilization methods against mask-contaminated microorganisms. In this study, we measured the efficacy of ultraviolet (UV) laser irradiation (266 nm) as a sterilization technique against Bacillus atrophaeus spores and Escherichia coli on three different types of face mask. The UV laser source demonstrated high penetration of inner mask layers, inactivating microorganisms in a short time while maintaining the particle filtration efficiency of the masks. This study demonstrates that UV laser irradiation is an efficient sterilization method for removing pathogens from face masks.
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) provide insight into the taste and aroma of milk. VOCs in milk are typically analyzed using headspace gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC‐MS). While static headspace GC‐MS is a simple and widely applicable analytical technique for the analysis of VOCs in various samples, it has not been frequently applied to milk samples. In this study, static headspace GC‐MS was used to compare the VOCs of three different brands of commercial milk. Three components were identified in the samples, that is, acetone, toluene, and 2‐heptanone, where the concentration ranges of acetone, toluene, and 2‐heptanone in the milk samples were 2.284–3.256, 0.028–0.178, and 0.014–0.020 μg/mL, respectively. A literature review found that all three components were previously reported in milk, while toluene and 2‐heptanone were newly identified using headspace GC‐MS in this study.
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