Protecting Yourself
Wear a mask or don't wear a mask? What does a mask do and can it protect you from a microbe? In this exploration students can test various materials to determine their quality for filtering our particles.
Materials Required
• Vacuum cleaner
• Black sock or piece of black material
• Paper towel, coffee filter, and other materials
Procedure
1. Place some corn starch on a plate or dish on the floor. (The good thing about this exploration is that when you are done you can just clean up the mess with the vacuum!)
2. Put a black sock or other black material over the end of the vacuum hose.
3. Cover the black sock with the filter you want to test. This simulates breathing in air and particles. In this test we used a paper towel:
4. Turn on the vacuum and try to suck in the corn starch. It should look like this when you are finished. Notice the corn starch on the paper towel and pressed against the sock.
5. Now, remove the paper towel or other test filter and carefully examine the black sock.
6. Try a variety of filters with your system: 1 sheet of paper towels, 2 sheets, 3 sheets. Is there a difference in how much corn starch gets through? Make a data table to record your results.
Questions
• What material kept out the most particles?
• Would it make a good filter to keep out a bacteria or a virus?
• How would you test a mask to see if it were truly effective?
Discussion
There are various approaches for making an effective mask. Read this material for helpful insights:
https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/best-materials-make-diy-masks-virus/