Korean researchers have successfully developed a new material-based mask that can be washed and used for a month.
If the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety permits are granted at a fast pace, it is expected that full-scale commercialization will be possible within a month, and average daily production of masks will be increased to 50,000 units in April.
KAIST announced on March 16 that a research team led by Kim Il-doo, a professor of new material engineering, developed a nanofiber membrane that maintains excellent filter efficiency even after washing by developing its own technology that aligns "nano fiber" with a diameter of 100 to 500 nm in a straight or single direction.
According to Prof. Kim, the orthogonal nano-fiber based mask that was developed this time is confirmed by the ethanol sterilization cleaning test that the early filtration efficiency is maintained by 94 percent or more after 20 repeated washing.
It was confirmed through observation that no structural changes in nano-fiber membrane occurred even after 20 hand washing.
This mask has the advantage of being used for sterilizing and cleaning with ethanol for more than a month, especially since it does not cause nano fiber to melt or membrane to twist even after being immersed in ethanol for more than three hours.
Professor Kim added, "We will soon develop high-quality filters that improve the stability of use by giving an anti-bacterial function to the aligned membrane while increasing production through the expansion of facilities in mass production."
