Project | PDMSmasks4ALL: Development of transparent, reusable and recyclable PDMS masks produced with the latest technologies for protection from COVID-19

Co-financed by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), under the COMPETE 2020 Operational Program for Competitiveness and Internationalization of Portugal 2020.

Main goal | Reinforce research, technological development and innovation

Location | North

Consortium | OTOJAL - Estamparia Têxtil, Lda.; Instituto Politécnico de Bragança; CVR - Centro para a Valorização de Resíduos

Approval date | 2020-09-24

Start date | 2020-03-01

End date | 2021-05-28

Total eligible cost | 464.477,77 €

EU financial support | 371.582,22 € (ERDF)

Synthesis
Description and goals

The project aims to use state-of-the-art technologies in the development of PDMS face masks, efficient in protecting COVID-19 and with unique characteristics: transparent, light, breathable, flexible, reusable, recyclable and easy to manufacture, through casting of polymers. These transparent masks will be the first in the world with all these features combined.

This project has a multidisciplinary team of researchers, with extensive experience in the manufacture of medical devices in PDMS, product design, micro/nanofluids, 3D printing, nanotechnology and biomedical. Thus, in this project, three alternative models are proposed:

1) masks made with 95% PDMS;

2) masks made with 20% PDMS and 80% textile material;

3) masks recycled with the original PDMS and the incorporation of recycled material from the masks into end-of-life PDMS.