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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Memories of COVID-19: The Types of Fitted Face Masks Between Public Health Advice and Personal Choice
ClearA Novel Face Masks and it’s Utility during COVID-19 Pandemic: A Comprehensive Review
This review examines the technical specifications, materials, and engineering advances of face masks used during the COVID-19 pandemic, including both commercial and homemade options. Researchers discuss the environmental impact of disposable masks, noting that their widespread use has contributed to microplastic pollution as mask materials degrade. The study highlights the need for mask designs that balance effective viral protection with reduced environmental contamination.
The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks.
This study compared the filtration effectiveness and environmental impact of single-use versus reusable face masks during COVID-19, finding that reusable masks can be comparable in protection while significantly reducing plastic waste. Billions of disposable masks ended up in the environment during the pandemic, releasing microplastic fibers and fragments as they degraded.
Different Type of Face Masks and Their Protection Against Covid-19
This review examined the protective effectiveness of different face mask types against COVID-19. While focused on masks as infection control, surgical and N95 masks are a significant source of microplastic fibers released into the environment during use and disposal.
Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices of Face Mask Use among University Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study
Researchers surveyed 255 university students on face mask handling and disposal during COVID-19, finding that mask type choices were influenced by gender and age, while disposal practices and hand hygiene habits varied significantly by educational level.
Public face masks wearing during the COVID-19 pandemic: A comprehensive analysis is needed for potential implications
This review weighed evidence on the effectiveness of face masks for preventing COVID-19 transmission against growing evidence that masks release microplastics and chemical contaminants when worn and degraded. The authors concluded that the public health benefits of mask use during the pandemic outweighed plastic exposure risks, but called for redesigned masks with lower MP release and better end-of-life management.
The Ultra Fit Community Mask - Toward Maximal Respiratory Protection via Personalized Face Fit
Researchers developed modifications to standard disposable face masks to greatly improve their fit against the face, increasing protection against airborne pathogens. Better-fitting masks reduce the need for disposable mask overuse, potentially reducing the plastic waste generated by single-use PPE.
The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks.
Reusable fabric face masks and single-use surgical masks were compared for filtration efficiency and particle shedding, with single-use masks providing better protection against airborne pathogens but generating more plastic waste, while reusable cotton masks reduced waste but required proper washing protocols to maintain effectiveness.
A Review of the Fabrication Methods, Testing, and Performance of Face Masks
This review covered the fabrication methods, filtration performance, comfort characteristics, and certification standards of face masks and respirators, with particular attention to developments during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors identified trade-offs between filtration efficiency, breathability, and user comfort across different mask types and materials.
The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks
Researchers compared single-use and reusable face masks across effectiveness, environmental impact, and cost during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK. The study found that while single-use masks have higher standalone filtration performance, reusable masks adequately slow respiratory virus transmission and generate over 85% less waste, 3.5 times lower climate impact, and 3.7 times lower costs than single-use alternatives.
Understanding the environmental impacts of facemasks: a review on the facemask industry and existing life cycle assessment studies
This review examined the environmental life cycle impacts of disposable face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic, finding that the surge in mask production and disposal created a significant new source of plastic waste and microplastic pollution globally.
Face Masks to Combat Coronavirus (COVID-19)—Processing, Roles, Requirements, Efficacy, Risk and Sustainability
This review examines the materials, manufacturing methods, and effectiveness of face masks used during the COVID-19 pandemic, most of which are made from non-biodegradable plastics like polypropylene and polyester. Researchers found that while masks are effective at reducing virus transmission, their widespread use and improper disposal have created a significant environmental concern as they break down into microplastics. The study calls for more sustainable mask materials and better waste management strategies to reduce the environmental footprint of pandemic-related plastic waste.
The Life of a Face Mask: from Production to Use to Disposal
This review covers the full life cycle of face masks—from production through use to disposal—and their protective efficacy and environmental impact. The widespread use of single-use plastic masks during COVID-19 generated millions of tons of plastic waste that risks fragmenting into environmental microplastics.
Eco-design Actions to Improve Life Cycle Environmental Performance of Face Masks in the Pandemic Era
This study evaluated the environmental impact of single-use face masks throughout their life cycle and proposed eco-design strategies to reduce their footprint. The massive increase in disposable mask use during COVID-19 generated significant plastic waste and potential microplastic pollution.
Face masks: a COVID-19 protector or environmental contaminant?
This review examined how the massive global use of disposable face masks during COVID-19 has created a significant source of microplastic pollution, with billions of masks entering the environment and releasing plastic fibers and chemical contaminants.
Analysis of the Optimal Use of Fabric Masks and Disposable Medical Masks During the COVID-19
This paper is not about microplastics — it compares the environmental, economic, and public health trade-offs of disposable medical masks versus reusable cloth masks during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Public Handling of Protective Masks from Use to Disposal and Recycling Options to New Products
This paper examines how disposable surgical masks — widely used during the pandemic — are being disposed of and their environmental impacts, including the release of microplastic fibers. The authors discuss recycling options and the public's current relationship with mask waste.
Community practices of face mask use and associated knowledge and attitude in a Malaysian town during the COVID-19 pandemic
This survey studied face mask use practices and related knowledge and attitudes in a Malaysian town during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study offers insights into pandemic-related behavior with implications for managing the surge in mask-related plastic waste.
Facing COVID-19: Quantifying the Use of Reusable vs. Disposable Facemasks
This study compared the environmental cost of single-use surgical masks versus reusable cloth masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Reusable masks had a significantly lower environmental impact per use, especially when washed efficiently. The findings support policies favoring reusable masks to reduce pandemic-related plastic waste.
Which strategy for using medical and community masks? A prospective analysis of their environmental impact
Comparing disposable medical masks to reusable community masks, this study found that a wait-and-reuse strategy with medical masks offered the best balance of environmental impact and protective effectiveness during the pandemic.
Predictions of hazardous plastic waste amounts based on disposable face mask wearing habits
Researchers surveyed Lithuanian public attitudes toward face mask wearing during the COVID-19 pandemic and used the data to predict the amounts of hazardous plastic waste generated from disposable mask usage, finding a troubling proportion of the population resisted mandates despite infection control rationale.
Microplastics from face masks: A potential hazard post Covid-19 pandemic
Researchers quantified the annual face mask usage and associated plastic waste across 36 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, estimating total annual mask usage exceeding 1.5 million tonnes and associated plastic waste of approximately 4.2 million tonnes. The study highlights that global COVID-19 responses substantially increased environmental microplastic burdens from single-use face mask disposal.
Domestic Facemask Waste Policy Based on Environmental Ethics in the Covid-19 Pandemic: Urgency and Challenges
This paper argues that the mass disposal of face masks during the Covid-19 pandemic created a new source of plastic and microplastic pollution, and calls for environmental ethics-based policy frameworks to govern mask waste management.
Review of the valorization options for the proper disposal of face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic
Researchers reviewed waste management options for the surge in discarded polypropylene face masks during COVID-19, finding that improper disposal contributes directly to microplastic pollution, and proposing valorization strategies — including energy recovery and material upcycling — tailored to country-level infrastructure and emergency conditions.
Cotton and Surgical Masks—What Ecological Factors Are Relevant for Their Sustainability?
This study assessed the ecological sustainability of cotton and surgical face masks in the context of high pandemic-driven demand, examining factors including raw material sourcing, manufacturing footprint, use, and end-of-life disposal. It found that mask type, reuse frequency, and disposal pathway strongly influence overall environmental impact.