Correlation of antibacterial performance to electrostatic field in melt-blown polypropylene electret fabrics

ABSTRACT

Respirators have become popular personal protective equipment since the COVID-19 pandemic. The key material in respirators is the melt-blown polypropylene electret fabric (MBPPEF). In this article, the filtering and inactivating effects of electrostatic fields in the respirator materials on Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) are studied. As a typical airborne microorganism, S. aureus is often employed to evaluate the antibacterial performance of air filtration equipment. The results prove that the electrostatic field in MBPPEF plays the key role in filtrating S. aureus. All MBPPEF from different charging method can have a filtering efficiency of more than 99% against S. aureus. The inactivation rate of positive corona charged sample is the highest. The charging method will affect the formation of electrostatic fields in the MBPPEF, thereby affecting their antibacterial performance. © 2022