Professional protective mask

Professional protective mask

Professional protective masks are designed for use by workers at work, and meet national or industry standards. Masks with clear protective functions, such as particulate matter masks (formerly known as dust masks), medical masks, and surgical masks. In recent years, the public has become more worried about air pollution (such as PM2.5 concentration exceeds the standard), and outbreaks or epidemics of respiratory infectious diseases caused by emerging pathogenic viruses have occurred from time to time. Many people choose to wear masks when they go out. Protect yourself and make professional protective masks more widely used.

Application and classification

Wearing a mask reflects two purposes, either to protect the wearer or to protect the environment. Wearing any mask will block saliva droplets from talking or coughing, which is protective for others or the environment; most people wear masks to protect themselves, such as preventing pollutants in the air, or reducing some infectious agents This is the main purpose of professional protective masks. At home and abroad, professional protective masks are mainly represented by particulate matter protective masks (commonly known as dust masks), medical surgical masks and medical protective masks. There are applicable national standards or industry standards. Products must be tested and certified before they are allowed to work. Use. In terms of protective effects and application methods, there will be some overlap and overlap between different masks, each with its own characteristics.

Particulate protection mask

The purpose of the particle respirator is to protect all types of particulate air pollutants suspended in the air and provide respiratory protection for the wearer. Particulate matter respirator is the most widely used professional respirator

In addition to the use in traditional industrial and engineering construction, it is also widely used in agriculture, scientific research and teaching, and can protect various types of mine dust, coal dust, silicon dust, foundry smoke, welding smoke, medicine dust, grain dust, oil mist, Acid mist and radioactive aerosols and biological aerosols can also be used for the protection of various airborne pathogenic microorganisms, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis or SARS virus.

Figure 3. Particulate protection masks in various styles and functions

At home and abroad, compulsory product certification standards have been established for particulate protective masks, such as GB2626-2006 in China, 42CFR 84 in the United States, and EN 149-2001 in the European Community, etc. [[3-4]]. Because the standards have different requirements for the protection level of the product, in order to facilitate user selection and government supervision, these standards require a clear identification of the protection or filtration efficiency level on the surface of the mask and the packaging, and provide product certification. Information for easy verification. The standard will pass two of the most critical technical indicators, namely the filtration efficiency of particulate matter (reflected in the filter material of the mask) and the tightness between the mask and the wearer's face (reflected in the reliability of the design structure and fixing method of the mask To standardize the basic safety protection performance of protective masks; the standard will also limit breathing resistance to avoid excessive resistance that will adversely affect the user's health.

N95 masks refer to particulate protective masks certified by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in the United States with a protection level of N95 and an efficiency of 95%. Some N95 masks have been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to meet the special requirements of medical treatment, and are used as surgical N95 masks in surgery. [5] When SARS broke out in 2003, N95 masks became very well-known. Many companies outside the United States, including Chinese companies, applied for NIOSH certification. Products that are qualified will be marked with "NIOSH N95", but there are also Some manufacturers use N95's reputation to advertise their products, and make "N95" a trademark or change the name of their own products to mislead consumers. This is wrong and irregular behavior. In China's product standards, "N95" is not used as a mark of protection level in order to distinguish it from imported products and prevent confusion.

Medical surgical mask

Surgical masks are medical masks worn by medical personnel during invasive procedures to provide protection to patients undergoing treatment and medical personnel performing invasive procedures to prevent the spread of blood, body fluids and splashes. Existing medical device management system in China.

Medical surgical masks are Class II medical devices. Manufacturers should have medical device production licenses. Products should have medical device product registration certificates. They must comply with the pharmaceutical industry standard YY0469-2004. Be clear.

It can be considered that the use of medical surgical masks was developed on the basis of the application of the masks invented by Paul Berger, which is not only used to protect patients during surgery, but also increases some protective effects for medical staff. The YY0469-2004 standard reflects the barrier effect of masks on the droplets generated by the mask wearer by specifying the size of the mask and the filtering efficiency of the mask on large particles of bacteria (bacterial filtration efficiency). It is sprayed with synthetic blood with a certain pressure. The test evaluates the effect of the mask on blocking the transient penetration of body fluids and causing infection.

Some are similar to particulate protective masks. Surgical mask standards at home and abroad do not require tightness between the mask and the wearer's face, because surgical masks are not used to prevent airborne diseases and do not provide respiratory protection to the wearer. This is the same as medical masks. The main difference.

Medical protective mask

Medical protective masks have the protective properties of surgical masks and particulate protective masks. They are used in hospitals. They can filter particulates in the air and block droplets, blood, body fluids and secretions. They are also class II Device products must meet national mandatory standards GB19083-2010. [7]

Figure 5 Medical protective masks worn by medical staff

The first version of GB19083 was made urgently during the SARS outbreak in 2003, and the old version was revised in 2010. GB19083 has clear requirements for the filtering efficiency and tightness of masks. This point is similar to GB2626-2006. Medical protective masks are also surgical masks. Therefore, it is not allowed to set an exhalation valve to avoid droplets generated by the wearer Exhalation valve discharges contaminated surgical wounds;

Many medical protective masks use the blue-green color shown in Figure 5, which is only a habit in the medical industry. The material on the outer surface of the mask can block body fluid splashing. In this regard, non-medical particulate protective masks are usually Would consider.

Disposable mask

On the surface, disposable and medical surgical masks are difficult to distinguish. The disposable masks in the hospital belong to Class I medical devices. The products have medical product registration certificates. The pharmaceutical industry has no standards for such products. Manufacturers only produce according to corporate standards. Medical disposable masks do not have a protective function against body fluid splashes, and the filtering efficiency of droplets is uncertain, and they cannot be used for surgical operations.

Disposable masks are made of non-woven fabrics. They are very light and thin. They do not need to fit tightly on the face when they are worn. They have low resistance to air flow, high wearing comfort, and are cheap. They are usually discarded after use and widely used Food processing and the production of some electronic devices can prevent the operator from contaminating food or workpieces; in hospitals, medical staff will provide disposable medical masks for patients with respiratory infections to use when entering and exiting public areas, which can help reduce the spread of disease risks of. As the public's awareness of protecting against flu has increased, more and more people have realized that when they catch a cold or catch the flu, wearing disposable masks can reduce the risk of transmitting the disease to family and colleagues, which is worth promoting of.

Odor Reduction Mask

The two common products currently on the market are organic odor-reducing masks) and acid gas odor-reducing masks. Professional odor reduction masks are firstly particulate protective masks, which can be closely adhered to the face. A small amount of activated carbon adsorbent in the filter material can adsorb some low-concentration, harmless, but uncomfortable gaseous substances. It will have a certain effect on the odor from some putrid substances, or the unpleasant smell from some glue. Since this type of mask is only used in a harmless environment, there is no need to make specific requirements for the odor reduction effect with the standard. Depending on the subjective feeling of the wearer, the user can use some safe organic liquids (such as white vinegar, (High-purity acetic acid, or medical alcohol) to identify the effect of organic odor reduction.

The user should carefully read the instructions for use of the odor reduction mask to determine its applicability. Organic odor refers to odorous organic compounds volatilized from organic compounds that are liquid at normal temperature and pressure. The boiling point of such organic compounds is higher than room temperature. Therefore, masks with reduced organic odor are not suitable for formaldehyde. The boiling point of formaldehyde is -19ºC. Formalin is an aqueous formaldehyde solution, not liquid formaldehyde. Like methane, formaldehyde is also an organic gas. Ordinary activated carbon has no filtering effect on organic gases. Formaldehyde gas mask. When the concentration of gaseous pollutants in the environment with odors exceeds the health standard, odor reduction masks cannot be used, and gas masks should be used.