The feasibility of masks and face shields designed by 3D printing makers; some considerations of their use against the COVID-19

The use of mask and face shield has been established as one of the main preventive measures for the control of COVID 19 spread. In Mexico, as well as in other regions of the world, 3D printing has been employed for the design and production of masks and face shields as personal protective equipment (PPE). These models have been fabricated mainly by the makers, industries, and university communities; therefore, it is necessary to analyze the feasibility of the 3D printed PPE to understand its advantages and limitations. In this work, some characteristics of masks and face shields fabricated by additive manufacturing were studied to explore their viability as protection against flow fluids similar to human sneeze. In the present paper, the PPE was designed, and 3D printed utilizing three types of polylactic acid (PLA) as base material. The morphology and the surface elemental analyses of sectioned samples were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersion x-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Showing spacing between printed layers, porous areas, and dispersed copper particles. On the other hand, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation was carried out, the results demonstrated the importance of using PPE for protection of a possible exposure to a “contaminated” aerosol and human sneeze. Based on the abovementioned results, it is possible to consider the commercial PLA as suitable material for the manufacturing of PPE due to its capability to be disinfected employing isopropanol, ethanol, or commercial disinfectants.