The pandemic COVID-19, caused by SARS-COV-2 virus has shaken the entire world with no such remedy till date. The only possible way to stop transmission of SARS-COV-2 is to take safety precautions including use of facemask. With the ever-increasing concern on the disease, it is necessary to choose facemask components to achieve the performance as good as commercially available N95 masks in a cost-effective way. This investigation compares the effectiveness of five different 3-layered masks with N95 mask in terms of pressure drop and aerosol filtration capabilities. Different combinations of cotton, polypropylene fabric, tissue and high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) were used as mask materials. In comparison to N95 mask, the result shows that the 3-layered cotton mask has much lesser pressure drop but least droplet filtration efficiency, while polypropylene-HEPA-polypropylene mask is seen as the best cost-effective alternative to N95 in terms of droplets filtration efficiency and breathability. These findings are crucial to make the right non-medical facemask to combat COVID-19 and other airborne diseases.

Graphic abstract

中文翻译：

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不同口罩材料对抗空气传播疾病的有效性

由 SARS-COV-2 病毒引起的大流行 COVID-19 震惊了整个世界，迄今为止还没有这样的补救措施。阻止 SARS-COV-2 传播的唯一可能方法是采取安全预防措施，包括使用口罩。随着人们对疾病的日益关注，有必要选择口罩组件，以具有成本效益的方式实现与市售 N95 口罩一样好的性能。这项调查比较了五种不同的三层口罩与 N95 口罩在压降和气溶胶过滤能力方面的有效性。棉、聚丙烯织物、纸巾和高效微粒空气（HEPA）的不同组合被用作口罩材料。结果显示，与N95口罩相比，三层棉口罩的压降小得多，但飞沫过滤效率最低，而聚丙烯-HEPA-聚丙烯口罩在飞沫过滤效率和透气性方面被视为N95的最佳性价比替代品。这些发现对于制造正确的非医用口罩以对抗 COVID-19 和其他空气传播疾病至关重要。

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