Gas Mask – How to Choose Your Respiratory Protection

It only covers the lower part of the face (nose and mouth). It consists of a flexible seal and clamps to ensure a tight seal of the airways once set. However, there are two main restrictions on its use:

• The substances to be filtered are chlorine, ammonia and its derivatives or nitric acid, sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid etc. It should not be irritating to the eyes.
• Respiratory protection filters must not exceed 300 grams in weight, which significantly limits combined gas and particle configurations, such as the ABEK2-P3 cartridges most commonly used in the industry, weighing in excess of 300 grams.

It covers the entire face, nose, mouth and eyes. It is particularly suitable for use in environments that are highly toxic, corrosive or potentially hazardous to the mucous membranes of the eyes.

It has five attachment points for fixing to the face and can support filter cartridges weighing more than 300 grams (and are therefore more effective because they have more filtering elements), such as REACTOR filters (radioactive iodine) A2B2E2K1-P3 Reactor or CO/NO filters ABEK2HgNOCO20-P3 .

There are two main categories: single-cartridge masks equipped with RD DIN 40 filters (40 mm universal standard thread) and double-cartridge masks, which are more compact, have a wide field of view and have better load balance.

rd40 masks It has a wide range of filters (EN148-1 compliant). Due to their universality – all major brands of respiratory protection equipment offer RD DIN 40 filters – a wide range of filter cartridges are available.

Double cartridge masks It has two side filters. These dual-filter devices have several attractive advantages: an excellent load balance (loads are better shared) and a wider field of view because the filters are positioned laterally on the side of the face.

Filtered respiratory protection devices should not be used in the following situations:

• When the oxygen level in the air is insufficient (below 19%).
• In confined spaces (see CATEC ) or in all areas with little or no ventilation: tanks, vats, silos, tunnels, ship holds, etc.
• If the contaminant concentration is unknown or immediately lethal to humans (IDLH).
• When the pollutant concentration is above the maximum allowable concentration or beyond the filter capacity.

There are three categories: Particle filters (dust, aerosols, bacteria, viruses), anti-gas filters (organic, inorganic gases and vapors, acids, etc.) and combined filters (gas and particles).

Different particle filter classes:

• Class P1 filters: low efficiency, this stops at least 80% of the aerosol (i.e. less than 20% penetration)
• Class P2 filters: medium efficiency, this stops at least 94% of the aerosol (i.e. a penetration of less than 6%)
• P3 class filters (high efficiency): This stops at least 99.95% of the aerosol (i.e. less than 0.05% penetration)

There are different types of anti-gas filters depending on the nature of the gas or vapor. A marking consisting of a letter associated with a color indicates each filter type specific to each gas or gas family according to European standard EN14687. Similarly, for each gas or family of gases, there are three respiratory protection efficiency classes defined by EN143 and EN143/A1 standards:

Depending on the type of filtering device, the maximum permissible concentrations of toxic substances (gases or vapors) will be different, i.e. 50 x OEL for half masks and 2000 x OEL for full face masks. According to these parameters, the three efficiency classes of gas filters are:

• Class 1: Wafer filter (example A1 or ABEK1) – small capacity and low efficiency, gas content by volume below 0.1%.
• Class 2: Cartridge filter (example: A2B2 or ABEK2) – medium capacity, gas content by volume less than 0.5%.
• Class 3: For gas contents of less than 1% by volume.

As the name suggests, combined filters It stops both gases and particles. The air first passes through the particle filter element (which also acts as a pre-filter) and then through the gas absorbing element (activated carbon). Their coding retains the same principle, a group of letters (for gases), a number (for efficiency class) and class level for particles: example ABEK2-P3.

⇒ Find the right respiratory protection filter for your application

Respiratory protection masks are class 3 personal protective equipment. Therefore, like all class 3 PPE, they are subject to annual periodic inspection. This periodic check includes:

• Clean thoroughly with water to remove any splashes (mud, saliva, etc.).
• For a more thorough clean, machine wash with a cleaning and disinfecting product
• High temperature drying
• Verification of pressure and leakage parameters on the control bench
• The mask should be individually bagged to ensure it is clean and healthy.

GTC Industrial - Dräger's authorized maintenance center - carries out all annual periodic checks of Dräger respirators in our maintenance laboratory. Feel free to contact us for this class 3 PPE maintenance.