DOST-PTRI to make 500,000 reusable face masks with 'added protection against viruses'

The Department of Science and Technology's Philippine Textile Research Institute (DOST-PTRI) will be producing 500,000 pieces of face masks that are reusable up to 50 times to help with the shortage of surgical masks during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) threat.

On DOST Secretary  Fortunato de la Peña's Facebook page, he announced that DOST-PTRI will be doing this project in coordination with Taytay local government unit and private sector.

"It will use a PTRI textile-coating technology for treatment and finishing," de la Peña's post read.

DOST-PTRI, in a Facebook post, said the re-wearable face masks will be applied with textile water-repellent finishing technology developed by PTRI for added protection against viruses and bacteria that are usually spread through water droplets.

In an interview with GMA News Online, DOST-PTRI's Supervising Science Research Specialist Evangeline Flor Pascua-Manalang said PTRI's technology is applicable to textiles such as cotton that is "inherently water absorbent and breathable."

According to Manalang, the application of the technology will make the fabric of the mask water-repellent.

She said the COVID-19 virus is determined to be transmissible through liquid droplets, and with the outer layer of the mask being water-repellent, it can "repel liquid droplets and aerosol that carry airborne bacteria and virus particles that may penetrate the wearer’s mouth and nose, thereby adding protection."

Manalang continued, "The first 8000 masks will be ready by the end of next week. Ten thousand masks everyday thereafter." 

They are still finalizing logistics given the enhanced community quarantine being implemented in Luzon, with production and distribution is still being planned out.

According to de la Peña, PTRI will collaborate with Power Fashion Inc. to produce the masks using local fiber textiles, which will be donated by the latter. — Jannielyn Ann Bigtas/LA, GMA News