Face masks — the unofficial symbol of the COVID-19 pandemic — are leveling up.
SARS-CoV-2 can be detected by a mask equipped with special electronics. This virus causes COVID-19 and other airborne diseases. Within 10 minutesMaterials researcher Yin Fang with his colleagues reports September 19 in Matter.
“The lightness and wearability of this face mask allows users to wear it anytime, anywhere,” says Fang, of Tongji University in Shanghai. “It’s expected to serve as an early warning system to prevent large outbreaks of respiratory infectious diseases.”
The air droplets people inhale can carry viruses that are transmitted by the air. A person with a respiratory disease can expel thousands upon thousands of virus-containing dropslets through talking, coughing, and sneezing. Even people with no symptoms can still contract these viruses. People infected by SARS-CoV-2 may spread the virus to others, even if they don’t feel sick. Minimum of two to three business days before you start experiencing symptoms (SN: 3/13/20). When it comes to infecting people, viruses have a lot of advantage.
Fang and his team designed a sensor that detects the presence of certain viruses in the air. They attached it to a mask. The team then sprayed droplets containing protein from the viruses that cause COVID-19 or bird flu into a chamber using the mask.
The sensor could detect just a fraction of a microliter of these proteins — a cough might contain 10 to 80 times as much. Once a pathogen was detected, the sensor-mask combo sent a signal to the researchers informing them of the virus’s presence. Ultimately, the researchers plan for such signals to be sent to a wearer’s phone or other devices. This technology can be combined with traditional testing to help public health officials and health care providers better manage future pandemics.
