CUSAT find ways to recycle used medical masks as engineering products
February 10, 2021
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Plastic fibres separated from the used medical face masks could be blended with rubber to make polymer compounds and manufacture engineering products.
Disposal of face masks in these pandemic times has turned out to be a challenge for many. The researchers at Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) have developed an innovative method to recycle these used medical face masks as engineering products.
Prasanth Raghavan and P. M. Sabura Begum faculties at CUSAT, who jointly guided the research, said that the plastic fibres separated from the used medical face masks collected from various sources could be chopped and blended with rubber to make polymer blends with high tensile strength, impact strength and thermal properties. This can be used to manufacture high-performance engineering products such as car bumpers, dashboards, fighter jets and submarines as protective shielding to evade radar signals.