While face masks are all the rage these days, many companies like Apple have been working hard to create their own versions. But engineers at Stanford University may have found a way to improve the gold standard: the N95 mask.
Taking a break from developing fuel cells for next-generation cars, research scientist John Xu and mechanical engineer Friedrich Prinz have designed a new type of N95 that extracts and concentrates oxygen from the air to help users breathe better and avoid the negative side effects of oxygen deficiency (e.g. dizziness or lightheadedness).
The current N95s filter out 95 percent or more of matter from the air, including the COVID-19 virus. But in filtering those particles, the masks also reduce oxygen intake and make it harder to breathe. Enter Xu and Prinz’s version: It includes a small portable box worn at the waist with a tube connected to the face mask. The device generates pure oxygen using an electrochemical process to enrich oxygen from ambient air.
The team is currently hoping to get the masks in the hands of first-responders and healthcare workers—people who have to wear masks for sustained periods of time.
Think of them as caped crusaders with better masks.