Forced air gas mask/ respirator- does such thing exist and is it feasible?

Greetings everyone,

I was wondering if such a thing exists at all? A gas mask or a respirator that has a small electric powered air turbine or a fan that spins and helps force the air through the filter so that it is easier to breathe?

And then a microcontroller circuit board and a solenoid valve which would close upon exhaling?

You see, there is such a thing called respiratory acidosis and it cfan develop if you are breathing under a normal mask long enough, especially if you are physically active and demand more oxygen consumption.

Ideally, such a mask would contain 2 air turbines, 1 which would push the air through the filter upon inhaling and the other which would turn on upon exhaling clearing the carbon dioxide rich air out of the mask. Depending on whether the mask is solely for your protection or protection of others, a filter may or may not be needed on the exhaling turbine.

I know it sounds goofy but that mask would be a life saver for a lot of people who are in this situation forced to wear mask and are required to be physically active while doing so.

Perhaps it would be possible to construct such a mask?

The main question is whether such small air turbine (small rc electric ducted fan comes to mind, or even a turbocharger compressor) would provide enough pressure to push enough air through the filter to make breathing easier.



What are your thoughts on this?

Search for "supplied air breathing equipment". Yes they are available and required for some processes. Not as complicated as battery driven turbines but you don't want complication in something your life may depend on.

What about using a cpap machine. I use one on my boat and when I go camping and it uses a small battery pack which lasts at least three nights. It already has all the doohickies that sense when it needs air and when to exhaust it. It would be pretty simple to adapt it to any style of mask.

yes they are on the market but they are somewhat pricey . Sundström is a brand that I have seen used by wood lathe turners who do it for a living. They are battery operated and having seen them used in you tube videos I have watched on wood turning they appear to be comfortable and usable

If we doo all the design work for you, how much are you going to pay us ?

i have often worn on a belt a fan/filter unit (uses batteries) supplying air to filter respirator and there are also air hose supplied and compressed air supplied respirators too.
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for example on roof where toxic fumes coming out of roof vents getting air hose supplied air and when leaving roof you switch over to small belt worn compressed air tank so you can walk off the roof cause even 1 minute exposure you could not make it walking off the roof breathing the toxic fumes. industrially these are 1000's of toxic fumes where if you breath even 1% you would be very sick or die in less than 10 minutes
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many a time I have been sick all day cause I got only one wiff of toxic fumes leaking by a filter respirator. air supplied respirators better in that if a loose fit on your face the air supplied leaks out faster than you can inhale air. obviously anybody using a air supplied respirator all day can tell of effects from breathing dry and or cold air all day. better than breathing toxic fumes
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filter respirators even 98% efficient are not worth much, if you were a asbestos worker even 2% exposure to asbestos the long term effects are almost the same as no respirator. that be example were you want supplied air blowing into respirator mask leaking out so no chance of breathing any asbestos.
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many take yearly respirator test in a booth were they place a very smelly chemical and you can smell if you got a bad fit on a filter respirator. obviously if you cannot smell a toxic fume you would have no ideal if fumes were getting past a filter respirator
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this is similar to working around printing press inks where you touch once for even 1 second if it gets on gloves you can see by the colored stains all the stuff you have been touching later during the day. doesnt take long to get stuff from hands on your face, people touch glasses and facemask without even thinking about it. work around printing press inks most change rubber gloves every 5 minutes if they want to stay clean or no ink on your face. obviously you can also get on your shoes and later touching your shoes transfer contamination on to your hands. with colored inks or dyes literally one spec size of grain of sand can leave a big smear when wiping with alcohol soaked rag.
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obviously stuff on a face mask just taking the face mask off you can get stuff on your hands. really colored inks and dyes its really hard to stay clean all day. some solvent fumes on a printing press you wear a respirator of supplied air cause fumes would cause a person to pass out. many solvents are like chloroform you breath and you pass out quickly

Racal is one maker. They got bought out by 3M. Not to be confused by the other Racal that makes electronic stuff.
SCBA/Scot makes a lot of fire department breathing apparatus. Also bought out by 3M?
I do not understand the need for the fancy exhalation fan or control.
Make sure any air is not from a regular compressor or you breathe oil.
Years ago workers at Gallo wine went into a large tank to clean it. They plugged into factory airline to breathe supplied air. Problem was they connected to a nitrogen line instead. CO2 did not build up and they passed out and suffocated with no warning.
Standard, low pressure, fire fighter air bottle is only 30 minutes. Human breathes 5 liters/minute resting in hospital bed according to ventilater information kicking around these days.
Bill D.

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company...1017+8711405+8720539+8720547+3294857497&rt=r3

SCBA | 3M Scott

Crossed Connections in Medical Gas Systems

Yes they exist but please, please don't start a buying spree for "COVID-19" protection. That type of unit is critical for some workers including auto body personnel working in spray booths to prevent lung damage from certain paints.

crossthread said:

What about using a cpap machine. I use one on my boat and when I go camping and it uses a small battery pack which lasts at least three nights. It already has all the doohickies that sense when it needs air and when to exhaust it. It would be pretty simple to adapt it to any style of mask.

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NO, NO, NO!!!!!!!

CPAP machines are vital for people with COPD and they last thing they need is for the F***ing idiots from the panicked hoarding herd to start snapping up units and spares, creating yet another "COVID-19" panic shortage.

PS: The OP hasn't said what their "need" is but if it's simply to make wearing a mandated "fear mask" easier to breath in, the solution already exists in either an N95 with exhaust valve(s) or a single-layer cloth mask.

Once again: I see a potential for more panic-induced shortages that WILL eventually cost the lives of those who need serious occupational PPE.

during the first gulf war air respirators were hard to get as well as night vision googles (military had priority). often used in industrial areas too.
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obviously companies would have minimum amounts in tool crib at all times with reorder quantities enough to last the time it takes to get resupplied. i have had to order machine bearings only made once a year. you ordered enough to last a whole year at a time cause if only made in December you could have a long wait getting more supplies. not unusual to have emergency supplies enough to last 2X the normal reorder duration. just in time manufacturing often some customers (like governments or military) always have higher priority in emergencies. if there is a hurricane or earth quake or typhoon obviously factory might take a lot longer than normal to manufacture stuff, or manufactured items go to local government first during a big natural disaster like a earthquake or tsunami. to be expected

Just do a search for paintball stuff, China has already developed small fans designed to fit in masks. They work really well and draw next to nothing in power.

Gee Scottl. Did I harsh your mellow? He didn't say anything about covid-19. He was asking if there was a way to make it easier to breath through a (what I assume) is a shop respirator

I`m using Scott Autoflow when ever I do some dusty work, paint or weld. It is very nice as it pushes the air to mask so it doesn`t need to be air tight. Also no issues on fogging even if you sweat. Battery lasts around 8 hrs so doesn`t run dry quickly. However you better have A added to the filter or otherwise you`ll regret putting out gasses.

Corn said:

I`m using Scott Autoflow when ever I do some dusty work, paint or weld. It is very nice as it pushes the air to mask so it doesn`t need to be air tight. Also no issues on fogging even if you sweat. Battery lasts around 8 hrs so doesn`t run dry quickly. However you better have A added to the filter or otherwise you`ll regret putting out gasses.

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That is some funny shit right there....

This article has a lot of interesting info on forced air respirators and how they were used (and improperly modified) for the cleanup at Hanford. Classic case of a modification that seemed like a good idea (it made the rig more durable during demo work) but actually leaked a bit, and what it leaked was extremely dangerous. It was discovered by a worker wearing that config for spray painting, and he wondered, hey, why can I smell this spray paint?? They were using an Optimair TL power respirator.

I have always wanted to take the Hanford tour. Still hope to, someday.

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattl...inated-job-site-contractors-documents-reveal/

1) as others have mentioned, you are asking for a PAPR. Also, study the mechanicals of a SCBA. And many industrial versions of N95s come with a valve.

2) you are throwing around some medical terms as justifications for your design/build. I won’t comment on them other than this: I recommend reading Respiratory Physiology by a known/popular author such as Levitzky or even West.