Personal Protective Equipment
Testing the limits of facemask filtration
As the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread worldwide in the early part of this year, one of the first things to become clear was the supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) – facemasks in particular – was not ready for the ensuing surge in demand. In many parts of the world impacted by the coronavirus, …
A civil approach to facemask filtration
Standardized facemasks typically fall into one of two categories — surgical or respirator. Both variants are designed to offer various levels of protection against the transmission of bacteria and other particulates. World facemask guidelines are about science, but go beyond that. The science is defined by test methods that each region/country espouses. As a rule …
More efficient masks are the best weapons against COVID
The filtration industry needs to take the lead in resolving the COVID problem. Transmission does not come from contaminated food, mosquitoes or fleas. Very little transmission has been traced to surface contact. The new evidence is that small aerosols provide a major route for COVID transmission. These aerosols create viral clouds, which are not deterred …
Filtration in the age of COVID-19
There are many different facemasks in the market today – from do-it-yourself cut and sew barrier masks to highly engineered products that require testing and certification to be used. In the age of COVID-19, the term “facemask” is, in some cases, being used generically, when there are different types of facemasks with varying degrees of …
Is filtration more effective than social distancing in preventing virus spread?
At the time of this writing, the CDC predicts 135,000 deaths in the U.S. from COVID-19. McIlvaine has calculated the cost in terms of life quality reduction for those sickened, as well as those dying, plus healthcare costs at $58 million per death. The result is a $7.8 trillion cost, not including lost economic activity. …