An overview of filtration efficiency through the masks: Mechanisms of the aerosols penetration

Abstract

The masks have always been mentioned as an effective tool against environmental threats. They are considered as protective equipment to preserve the respiratory system against the non-desirable air droplets and aerosols such as the viral or pollution particles. The aerosols can be pollution existence in the air, or the infectious airborne viruses initiated from the sneezing, coughing of the infected people. The filtration efficiency of the different masks against these aerosols are not the same, as the particles have different sizes, shapes, and properties. Therefore, the challenge is to fabricate the filtration masks with higher efficiency to decrease the penetration percentage at the nastiest conditions. To achieve this concept, knowledge about the mechanisms of the penetration of the aerosols through the masks at different effective environmental conditions is necessary. In this paper, the literature about the different kinds of face masks and respiratory masks, common cases of their application, and the advantages and disadvantages of them in this regard have been reviewed. Moreover, the related mechanisms of the penetration of the aerosols through the masks are discussed. The environmental conditions affecting the penetration as well as the quality of the fabrication are studied. Finally, special attention was given to the numerical simulation related to the different existing mechanisms.

Environmentally friendly non-medical mask: An attempt to reduce the environmental impact from used masks during COVID 19 pandemic

“…The main criteria in this study was obtained from the systematic literature review stage and specified in two important characteristics, namely filtration efficiency and pressure drop or breathability. It was based on practical considerations for non-medical mask production by World Health Organization (2020) , and other study as in Chua et al (2020) , Aydin et al (2020) , Tcharkhtchi et al (2021) , Konda et al (2020) , and Zhao et al (2020) , as shown in Table S.2.

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“…Studies about the use of face mask have been widely discussed from the material perspective, which investigates the alternative material that has the ability to capture particles and droplet (filtration efficiency), breathability and comfortability ( Aydin et al, 2020 ; Bagheri et al, 2020 ; Chua et al, 2020 ; Clase et al, 2020 ; Davies et al, 2013 ; Konda et al, 2020 ; Rengasamy et al, 2010 ; Rogak et al, 2020 ; Tcharkhtchi et al, 2021 ; Teesing et al, 2020 ; Wilson et al, 2020 ; Zhao et al, 2020 ), from the perspective of utility ( Howard et al, 2020 ; Lepelletier et al, 2020 ; Phan and Ching, 2020 ; Rubio-Romero et al, 2020 ; Wang et al, 2020 ; Yang et al, 2020 ) and after use impact ( Aragaw, 2020 ; Fadare and Okoffo, 2020 ; Ilyas et al, 2020 ; Vanapalli et al, 2021 ). Although, a lot of studies about face mask have been carried out for several months, the number of studies in material choice, especially those that considered the environmental impacts due to the waste is still limited.…”

Dismantling myths on the airborne transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2)

“…Together, these create a ‘dynamic collision trap’ as particles pass through the network of air channels between fibres at various speeds. 57 …”

Face masks and nanotechnology: Keep the blue side up

“…The middle filter layer is most commonly made of polypropylene. Other types of protective equipment, P100 respirator/gas mask, self-contained breathing apparatus and full-face respirators are not commonly used by non-healthcare workers [8] .…”