Physicist creates N95-type respirators using cotton candy machine

Mahesh Bandi, physicist in the Nonlinear and Unbalanced Physics Unit, OIST Graduate University, Onna, Okinawa, has found a way to produce N95-type respiratory filters that are cheaper and faster than conventional approaches. In his article published in Proceedings of the Royal Society A, he describes the technique he has developed and the performance of his filters.

As the pandemic continued, scientists found that wearing a mask could reduce the spread of COVID-19. Unfortunately, cloth masks are far from foolproof. Research has shown that to prevent infection, people should wear an N95 respirator – a face mask that has electrocharged filters that attract and hold viruses, preventing them from passing through. These respirators are expensive, difficult to manufacture, and are rare. In this new effort, Bandi has found a way to make a filter as effective as those used in N95 respirators, but which can be produced quickly and inexpensively.

The technique involves heating ordinary plastics such as bottles or shopping bags and then putting them in a regular cotton candy machine (also known as a cotton candy machine). The machine spins the plastic into a material similar to cotton candy (a mesh), which is also electrocharged by the spinning. Bandi then cuts the resulting material into small squares, then builds their electrostatic charge by placing them near the vent of a common air ionizer.

Bandi tested their filters by placing several inside surgical masks. He found filters to work very well, but masks were not a viable option. He then designed his own mask to allow easy insertion and removal of the filters (each mask requires three) and used a 3-D printer to produce the result. Rigorous testing (which included microscopic inspections and comparisons with N95 filters) showed that the filters were as effective at preventing inhalation of SARS-CoV-2 viruses as standard N95 type respirators.

Bandi does not say if he intends to set up manufacturing centers for the masks – it seems he is simply publishing the idea as a way to allow others to do so.

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