It has been a month since the information about the new strain of coronavirus became public. Front pages of broadsheet newspapers and television screens have glaring images of facemasks worn by people in China. These single-use facemasks have spunmelt and carded filter substrates and have been in demand in China since the outbreak.
With the WHO’s recent announcement that this outbreak is a global emergency, containment measures will get attention including vaccine development. So far, there have been 170 deaths in China due to this outbreak and the infection has spread to 18 countries.
A primary mode of spread of this new coronavirus is by transmission through air and is airborne. Good hygiene such as hand wash and protection are recommended. Facemasks can help with the containment of airborne infection depending on their level of protection. Nonwoven wipes can be a good aide for personnel hygiene. According to INDA, filter and wipes substrates have 25 per cent share based on weight, collectively at the end-user level.