Sanitizing N95 respirator masks in an electric multi-cooker
By electric cooker, we mean even an Instant Pot or a rice cooker able to sustain a dry heating cycle of at least 50 minutes at 212 F (100ºC). The best news is that you can perform this kind of decontamination for at least 20 times.
This was the result of a study performed by the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, that found the N95 respirators were decontaminated inside and out while maintaining their filtration and fit. This could enable wearers to safely reuse limited supplies of the respirators, originally intended to be one-time-use items.
N95 respirator masks are the gold standard of personal protective equipment since they work not only against large droplets but they also filter out smaller airborne particles that might carry the new coronavirus causing COVID-19.
These findings are especially important for health care professionals in smaller clinics or hospitals that do not have access to large-scale heat sanitization equipment, but also for all those who may have an N95 respirator at home and need to reuse it.
