DEVELOPMENT OF COMFORTABLE, RESUABLE AND ADVANCEMENT IN MASKS.

TEXTILE TECHNOLOGY

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2020, has accelerated the need for personal protective equipment (PPE) masks as one of the methods to reduce and/or eliminate transmission of the coronavirus across communities. Despite the availability of different coronavirus vaccines, it is still recommended by the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO), and local authorities to apply public safety measures including maintaining social distancing and wearing face masks. This includes individuals who have been fully vaccinated. Remarkable increase in scientific studies, along with manufacturing-related research and development investigations, have been performed in an attempt to provide better PPE solutions during the pandemic. Recent literature has estimated the filtration efficiency (FE) of face masks and respirators shedding the light on specific targeted parameters that investigators can measure, detect, evaluate, and provide reliable data with consistent results. The aim of this article was to develop a three-layer mask, which was made of a polypropylene filter containing mangosteen extract by spray-coating technique in order to enhance antibacterial and antituberculosis activities. The bacterial filtration efficiency was performed by spraying the biological aerosol through the filters. Breathability of face masks was also measured as a pressure drop parameters. The physical properties of filters were evaluated in terms of surface morphology and water contact angle. The coated filters were then challenged with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli as the representative bacteria. The results showed that the increase in the mangosteen extract concentration for coating caused fiber diameter, hydrophilicity, % BFE (> 95%) and pressure drop of filters to be also increased. Investigation into release characteristic of mangosteen extract-coated polypropylene filters exhibited initial burst release after 60 min of immersion in a phosphate buffer solution. The coated filter exhibited good antibacterial performances against three types of pathogens. An in vitro cytotoxic test showed that 2% and 5% w/v mangosteen extract-coated polypropylene filters were not toxic by an indirect cytotoxicity test using L929 mouse fibroblast cells. This study demonstrated that the filters coated with mangosteen extract significantly play an important role in achieving antibacterial face mask.

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