The interpretation of selection criteria for protective masks

Recently, with the continuous infestation of hazy weather, masks with high filtering and protective performance have become necessary artifacts for the public to go out. However, the English letters on mask products often make people confused. What is the difference between N95, R95, P95? Does the KN100 mean that the mask's filtration efficiency is 100%? In fact, these logos represent different levels of protection for various masks. Each type of mask can provide a corresponding level of protection according to its different standards.

The N95 mask is currently the most familiar mask product for consumers. In fact, N95 is not a product name, but is one of the nine major categories of particulate respirator masks used by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). N means "Non-oil" (non-oil repellent), and 95 means "the efficiency of the mask filtering non-oily particles is at least 95%." Non-oily particulate matter generally refers to coal dust, cement dust, acid mist, microbes, and the like. At present, hazy smog pollution, suspended particles are mostly non-oily. Oily particulate matter refers to soot, oil mist, asphalt smoke, etc. Therefore, the N95 mask is a mask that can block 95% or more non-oil particles.

In addition to the N series of standards, the United States also has two major series of R and P standards. R refers to "Resistant to Oil", and P refers to "Oil protective" (oil repellent particles), meaning that both oily and non-oily particles can be filtered. These three series are divided into three levels of 95, 99, and 100, which represent the filter efficiency as >/=95%, >/=99%, and >/=99.97%. In the international market, another mainstream mask standard is the European EN standard. This standard classifies masks into three categories, namely FFP1, FFP2, and FFP3. The corresponding filtration efficiencies are >/=80%, >/=94%, and >/=99%. This standard oily and non-oily particulates are suitable.

China is currently adopting the national mandatory standard GB2626-2006 "Respiratory protective equipment - self-absorbing filter type particulate respirator" as a protective mask product standard. GB2626-2006 is mainly divided into two types of anti-particulate masks: KN and KP. Using US standards, KN ​​masks can only filter non-oily particles, while KP masks can filter both oily and non-oily particles. According to the different filtering efficiency, it is divided into three levels of 90, 95, and 100, representing the lowest filtration efficiency of 90%, 95%, and 99.97%, respectively. In general, China's GB standard has no essential difference between product protection performance and comfort requirements and foreign mainstream standards.

At present, the State Administration of Work Safety Supervision and Administration clearly requires: The special labor protection articles produced by enterprises must obtain the special labor protection articles safety signs (LA signs). Therefore, as a member of special labor protection articles, protective masks must be certified in order to prove that their functions are true and effective.

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