A breathable PTFE membrane for enhanced moxibustion process and occupational health protection

Smoke generated in moxibustion process, which is physiotherapy in traditional Chinese medicine, includes various organic compounds bearing particulate matter. In this paper, according to the composition analysis of moxa smoke, a breathable filter was introduced to reform the moxibustion box for reducing potential respiratory risk and environmental pollution. The breathability, smoke filtration performance, and reuse stability of the filters were systematically evaluated. PTFE membrane with its pore size around 1.44 μm can effectively filtrate (99.99%) the smoke aerosols with the gas permeance of 1257 m³·m^-2·h^-1·kPa^-1, while that of Cambridge filter is 469 m³·m^-2·h^-1·kPa^-1 (filtration efficiency 99.98%). Most of the organic substances such as o-cresol, phenol, stearic acid amide, 2-Pyrrolidinone, etc. can be captured by the PTFE membrane, indicating its excellent protection role. The regeneration performance of the filters and the filtration mechanism of the PTFE membrane were then revealed to verify the applicability of the filters. This PTFE reformed moxibustion box exhibits good application performance and can be well used in clinical practice.