Aesthetically Acceptable, Breath Friendly Triboelectric Face Masks: Design, Fabrication, and Its Efficacy

摘要

Since the beginning of the COVID‐19 pandemic, several attempts have been made worldwide to control the spread of the virus. It is widely accepted that wearing face masks in public and workplaces suppresses the transmission of the virus. Highly effective face masks, e.g. N95, have a high filtration efficiency but with a large pressure drop, which does not allow one to wear the mask comfortably for long hours. A larger population wearing a moderate efficiency mask can also cut the transmission at large. Herein, mask panels from readily available fabrics are developed, that can generate triboelectricity, which enhances the filtration efficiency by around 18 without compromising the pressure drop—allowing one to wear the mask for an extended period. The unique cup‐shaped design of the mask provides a snug fit with no speech distortion or fogging on the glasses.