Benchtop assessment of sealing efficacy and breathability of additively manufactured (AM) face masks.

ABSTRACT: The onset of the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) led to a shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE), medical devices, and other medical supplies causing many stakeholders and the general public alike to turn to additive manufacturing (AM) as a stopgap when normally accessible devices were not available. However, without a method to test these AM constructs, there continued to be a disconnect between AM suppliers and the community's needs. The objective of this study was to characterize the pressure drop and leakage of four different publicly available AM face mask models with two filter material combinations, as well as to investigate the impact of frame modification techniques including the use of foam strips and hot-water face forming to improve fit when the masks are don

SUBMITTER: Fogarasi M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9974208 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature