Versarien plc (LON:VRS), the advanced materials engineering group, has announced the launch of its first Graphene Enhanced Protective Face Mask, which utilises PolygreneTM, Versarien’s graphene enhanced polymer.
The launch of the new protective face mask coincides with the first two orders Versarien has received following recent prelaunch sales activity, which resulted in 100,000 masks being delivered to a leading British university and 20,000 ordered by a UK electrical and mechanical servicing and repairs business.
Designed and manufactured with a Chinese partner, Versarien’s graphene enhanced mask is a filtering facepiece (FFP2 rated version), which is designed to help provide enhanced protection against airborne bacteria and to minimise the spread of viral infection.
It meets the important BS EN 149:2001+A1:2009 standard (Respiratory protective devices), its antibacterial performance is certified according to GB/T 20944.2.2007 and its anti-viral performance is certified according to ISO 18184:2014 (E). Consequently, it meets the guidelines issued by the World Health Organisation.
The new mask is enhanced with a coated layer utilising Polygrene, an advanced graphene-based material featuring Nanene – the world’s only independently Verified Graphene Product certified by The Graphene Council. The addition of graphene to polymers provides many benefits including allowing innovative products to be developed utilising existing production processes. The Polygrene is blended with a sustainably sourced cellulose (viscose) material mix.
Neill Ricketts, CEO of Versarien, commented: “Our new graphene enhanced mask is just one example of Polygrene’s versatility and the high-quality design specifications that can be met using the material. We have taken great encouragement from the initial level of interest and are already in discussions with a number of other potential customers. Importantly, through our partner, we also have the capacity to fulfil much larger numbers of product orders going forward.”
