Are you good at building electronic and mechanical gear? Want to help build a rig to test Covid-19 face masks and materials for filtration efficiency and breathability?

We have a plan, and can contribute some funding to get the components. But we really need someone to spearhead this project! If interested, please contact me at patrikd@gmail.com, and we can sort out the logistics...

People around the world are sewing DIY cloth masks, or buying N95 masks from dubious suppliers with little or no quality control. There is a big need for being able to test cloth materials and completed masks for filtration efficiency and breathability. But the official, professional testing gear costs around $90,000.

The Smart Air folks in Beijing built this far more accessible testing rig, and used it to show that half of the N95 masks they sourced from different Chinese suppliers did not meet specs:
https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/testing-china-kn95-n95-masks-supplemental-data/
Smart-Air-N95-mask-test-setup-wind-tunnel.jpg

The Met One GT-521 particle counter that Smart Air used in their setup costs around $2000 new. But Adafruit sells a $45 Arduino-compatible particle counter module that can measure down to 0.3 micron. A DIY version of this rig can probably be built for around $100 total. (Alternatively, a used Met One GT-321 particle counter costs around $600. Or a PerfectPrime AQ9600 particle counter only costs around $200 new)

The plan would be to do some research on which fans and pressure sensors to use, order some materials, build a test rig, document the heck out of it so others can replicate it (e.g. on Instructables or Hackaday), and start testing mask materials - maybe in collaboration with Rachel at Ace Monster Toys and the other folks in the Bay Area PPE group that are sewing thousands of masks right now.

Our biggest bottleneck right now is that we need someone to lead the actual building. I definitely want to be involved, can help with the research and design, and am willing to put in some of my own money to buy supplies. But I'm also still 100% Working From Home for my day job and don't have the bandwidth right now to take this on by myself. 

Help wanted!

Patrik