Table 3.

Different types of Masks and its uses.

TYPES OF MASKS	SURGICAL MASK	CLOTH MASKS	N95 RESPIRATORS	REFERENCES
Testing and Approval	European Standard EN 14683:2019 + AC: 2019, ASTM F2100- 11 in the United States, YY 0469 in China.	None	European Standard EN 149:2001 + A1: 2009, NIOSH-42CFR84 in the United States, GB2626-2006 in China.	AENOR, 2010; AFNOR 2020; Battelle, 2016; Bimedica, 2020a, b; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020a, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020b; ECDC, 2020a, b; FDA, 2020a, b; UNE, 2020.
Intended use and purpose	Fluid resistant and protects wearer from large droplets, splashes and bodily fluids	Helps protect others from you, not fluid resistant	Reduces wearer’s exposure to airborne particles including small particle aerosols and large fluid droplets.
Breathability	Breathable	Breathable	Difficult
Material	Non-Woven Fabric Polypropylene 3 Layers - Outer Layer-Hydrophobic Non-Woven layer, Middle layer - Melt blown filter, Inner layer -Soft absorbent Non-Woven layer	Cotton Filter paper, Nylon	1st layer - Spun-bond polypropylene 2nd layer - Cellulose/Polyester 3rd layer -Melt-blown polypropylene Filter Material 4th layer – spun-bond polypropylene
Leakage	Leakage through mask edges	Leakage occurs throughout cloth	Minimal leakage. When [properly fitted and worn]
Face Seal	Loose-fitted	Loose-fitted	Tight-fitted
Filtration	Moderate level filtration	Low level filtration	High level filtration
Limitation for usage	Disposable/Single use	Re-useable	Discard after each use, But can be used up to 5 times