A method to determine the available UV-C dose for the decontamination of filtering facepiece respirators

Details

• Personal Author:
  Fisher EM ; Shaffer RE
• Description:
  Aims: To develop a method to assess model-specific parameters for ultraviolet-C (UV-C, 254 nm) decontamination of filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs). Methods and Results: UV-C transmittance was quantified for the distinct composite layers of six N95 FFR models and used to calculate model-specific alpha-values, the percentage of the surface UV-C irradiance available for the internal filtering medium (IFM). Circular coupons, excised from the FFRs, were exposed to aerosolized particles containing MS2 coliphage and treated with IFM-specific UV-C doses ranging from 38 to 4707 J m(-2) . Models exposed to a minimum IFM dose of 1000 J m(-2) demonstrated at least a 3 log reduction (LR) in viable MS2. Model-specific exposure times to achieve this IFM dose ranged from 2 to 266 min. Conclusions: UV-C transmits into and through FFR materials. LR of MS2 was a function of model-specific IFM UV-C doses. Significance and Impact of the Study: Filtering facepiece respirators are in high demand during infectious disease outbreaks, potentially leading to supply shortages. Reuse of disposable FFRs after decontamination has been discussed as a possible remediation strategy, but to date lacks supporting scientific evidence. The methods described here can be used to assess the likelihood that UV-C decontamination will be successful for specific FFR models. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Communicable Diseases Health Care Facilities Workforce And Services Influenza, Human Occupational Health Particulate Matter Personal Protective Equipment Respiratory Protective Devices Respiratory System Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Decontamination Decontamination Exposure-limits Filtering Facepiece Respirator Filters Health-care-facilities Infection-control Influenza Medical-equipment Pandemic Particulates Respirators Respiratory-equipment Respiratory-protection Respiratory-protective-equipment UV-C

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• ISSN:
  1364-5072
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  NPPTL - National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  287-295
• Volume:
  110
• Issue:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20037884
• Citation:
  J Appl Microbiol 2011 Jan; 110(1):287-295
• Contact Point Address:
  Ronald E. Shaffer, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory, 626 Cochrans Mill Rd., PO Box 18070, Pittsburgh, PA 15236
• Email:
  RShaffer@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2011
• NORA Priority Area:
  Healthcare and Social Assistance
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Applied Microbiology
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:531ec10b463c73448357267354a2c3bf2e450fbc2f619c16020d4e504af1ef99aa1c0e6e02a5445db5a72165258c104b87ab65e25136724294bdcff6ea74451f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/191807/cdc_191807_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 190.56 KB ]