Sticky mat

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A sticky mat in a lens manufacturing facility Flooring at Carl Zeiss.JPG
A sticky mat in a lens manufacturing facility
A sticky mat in a nanomaterials production facility. Ideally, other engineering controls should lessen the amount of dust collecting on the floor and being tracked onto the sticky mat, unlike this example. Sticky mat with nanomaterials.png
A sticky mat in a nanomaterials production facility. Ideally, other engineering controls should lessen the amount of dust collecting on the floor and being tracked onto the sticky mat, unlike this example.

A sticky mat, also called a tacky mat or cleanroom mat, is a mat with an adhesive surface that is placed at the entrances or exits to certain workplaces to remove contaminants from the bottoms of footwear and wheeled carts such as hand trucks. [2] They are an example of an engineering control within the hierarchy of hazard controls. [1]

Sticky mats are typically used in cleanrooms [2] and construction sites. [3] Their purpose is to prevent contaminants from entering the site with personnel, and hazardous materials from exiting. In a cleanroom setting, airborne particles that are not removed by the ventilation system deposit themselves onto a surface, where they can be transported by personnel walking on or past them. [2] [4]

Sticky mats can be temporary or permanent. Temporary sticky mats are made of a stack of adhesive plastic film layers that are periodically peeled off and discarded. Permanent mats are made of a polymer, usually polyester- or polyvinyl chloride-based, that binds particles through electrostatic forces. The peeling process for temporary mats may dislodge particles from the mat, causing inhalation risk. [2] [5] However, permanent mats must be washed with a mop and detergent, which is more time-consuming and may be done less often. [5]

A 2012 study found that temporary adhesive mats reduced the particle level on shoes and overshoes by 20–50% while permanent polymeric flooring reduced it by approximately 80%, and that adhesive mats released more particles when they were dirtier and when they were peeled quickly. [2] However, sticky mats placed outside the entrance to an operating room or suite have not been shown to reduce the number of organisms on shoes or stretcher wheels, nor do they reduce the risk of surgical site infections. [6]

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Flooring is the general term for a permanent covering of a floor, or for the work of installing such a floor covering. Floor covering is a term to generically describe any finish material applied over a floor structure to provide a walking surface. Both terms are used interchangeably but floor covering refers more to loose-laid materials.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cleanroom</span> Dust-free room for research or production

A cleanroom or clean room is an engineered space, which maintains a very low concentration of airborne particulates. It is well isolated, well-controlled from contamination, and actively cleansed. Such rooms are commonly needed for scientific research, and in industrial production for all nanoscale processes, such as semiconductor manufacturing. A cleanroom is designed to keep everything from dust, to airborne organisms, or vaporised particles, away from it, and so from whatever material is being handled inside it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operating theater</span> A room in a hospital in which surgeries are performed

An operating theater is a facility within a hospital where surgical operations are carried out in an aseptic environment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mat</span> Protective or cushioning floor covering

A mat is a hard floor covering that generally is placed on a floor or other flat surface. Mats serve a range of purposes including:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air ioniser</span> ION is mostly used on air conditioning products. Ioniser is another word for air purifier

An air ioniser is a device that uses high voltage to ionise air molecules. Negative ions, or anions, are particles with one or more extra electrons, conferring a net negative charge to the particle. Cations are positive ions missing one or more electrons, resulting in a net positive charge. Some commercial air purifiers are designed to generate negative ions. Another type of air ioniser is the electrostatic discharge (ESD) ioniser used to neutralise static charge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surgical mask</span> Mouth and nose cover against bacterial aerosols

A surgical mask, also known by other names such as a medical face mask or procedure mask, is a personal protective equipment used by healthcare professionals that serves as a mechanical barrier that interferes with direct airflow in and out of respiratory orifices. This helps reduce airborne transmission of pathogens and other aerosolized contaminants between the wearer and nearby people via respiratory droplets ejected when sneezing, coughing, forceful expiration or unintentionally spitting when talking, etc. Surgical masks may be labeled as surgical, isolation, dental or medical procedure masks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adhesion</span> Molecular property

Adhesion is the tendency of dissimilar particles or surfaces to cling to one another.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medical glove</span> Single-use glove worn during medical examinations and procedures

Medical gloves are disposable gloves used during medical examinations and procedures to help prevent cross-contamination between caregivers and patients. Medical gloves are made of different polymers including latex, nitrile rubber, polyvinyl chloride and neoprene; they come unpowdered, or powdered with corn starch to lubricate the gloves, making them easier to put on the hands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Primer (paint)</span> Preparatory coating put on materials before painting

A primer or undercoat is a preparatory coating put on materials before painting. Priming ensures better adhesion of paint to the surface, increases paint durability, and provides additional protection for the material being painted.

Infection prevention and control is the discipline concerned with preventing healthcare-associated infections; a practical rather than academic sub-discipline of epidemiology. In Northern Europe, infection prevention and control is expanded from healthcare into a component in public health, known as "infection protection". It is an essential part of the infrastructure of health care. Infection control and hospital epidemiology are akin to public health practice, practiced within the confines of a particular health-care delivery system rather than directed at society as a whole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pressure-sensitive adhesive</span> Type of non reactive adhesive

Pressure-sensitive adhesive is a type of nonreactive adhesive which forms a bond when pressure is applied to bond the adhesive with a surface. No solvent, water, or heat is needed to activate the adhesive. It is used in pressure-sensitive tapes, labels, glue dots, stickers, sticky note pads, automobile trim, and a wide variety of other products.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air shower (room)</span>

Air showers are specialized enclosed antechambers which are incorporated as entryways of cleanrooms and other controlled environments to reduce particle contamination. Air showers utilize high-pressure, HEPA- or ULPA-filtered air to remove dust, fibrous lint and other contaminants from personnel or object surfaces. The forceful "cleansing" of surfaces before entering clean environments reduces the number of airborne particulates introduced.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Contamination control</span> Activities aiming to reduce contamination

Contamination control is the generic term for all activities aiming to control the existence, growth and proliferation of contamination in certain areas. Contamination control may refer to the atmosphere as well as to surfaces, to particulate matter as well as to microbes and to contamination prevention as well as to decontamination.

Deinking is the industrial process of removing printing ink from paperfibers of recycled paper to make deinked pulp.

The chemistry of pressure-sensitive adhesives describes the chemical science associated with pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSA). PSA tapes and labels have become an important part of everyday life. These rely on adhesive material affixed to a backing such as paper or plastic film.

Postoperative wounds are those wounds acquired during surgical procedures. Postoperative wound healing occurs after surgery and normally follows distinct bodily reactions: the inflammatory response, the proliferation of cells and tissues that initiate healing, and the final remodeling. Postoperative wounds are different from other wounds in that they are anticipated and treatment is usually standardized depending on the type of surgery performed. Since the wounds are 'predicted' actions can be taken beforehand and after surgery that can reduce complications and promote healing.

Air filtration guidelines for operating rooms are determined by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) using a standard known as Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV). MERV is determined based on the size of particles successfully removed from the air and is used to classify the efficiency of HEPA filters. Ratings range from 1-16 and efficiency increases as the rating increases. ASHRAE groups surgeries into three categories: minor surgical procedures (A); minor or major surgical procedures performed with minor sedation (B); and major surgical procedures performed with general anesthesia or regional block anesthesia (C). Each surgical category is given a minimum MERV rating it must comply with.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medical gown</span> Type of personal protective equipment worn by medical professionals

Medical gowns are hospital gowns worn by medical professionals as personal protective equipment (PPE) in order to provide a barrier between patient and professional. Whereas patient gowns are flimsy often with exposed backs and arms, PPE gowns, as seen below in the cardiac surgeon photograph, cover most of the exposed skin surfaces of the professional medics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Source control (respiratory disease)</span> Strategy for reducing disease transmission

Source control is a strategy for reducing disease transmission by blocking respiratory secretions produced through speaking, coughing, sneezing or singing. Surgical masks are commonly used for this purpose, with cloth face masks recommended for use by the public only in epidemic situations when there are shortages of surgical masks. In addition, respiratory etiquette such as covering the mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing can be considered source control. In diseases transmitted by droplets or aerosols, understanding air flow, particle and aerosol transport may lead to rational infrastructural source control measures that minimize exposure of susceptible persons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surgical drape</span>

A surgical drape is a sterile sheet used to create a sterile field during surgical procedures with the purpose of preventing the spread of infection from non-sterile to sterile areas and protecting the patient from contamination.

References

  1. 1 2 "Building a Safety Program to Protect the Nanotechnology Workforce: A Guide for Small to Medium-Sized Enterprises". U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health . March 2016. pp. 10–11. Retrieved 2017-03-05.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Sandle, Tim (2012-07-11). "Contamination Control Under Foot". Controlled Environments. Retrieved 2017-03-06.
  3. "Guidelines for Environmental Infection Control in Health-Care Facilities" (PDF). U.S. Centers for Disease Control. 2003. pp. 30, 33, 76. Retrieved 2017-03-06.
  4. Sandle, Tim (July 2014). "Examination of air and surface particulate levels from cleanroom mats and polymeric flooring" (PDF). Hot Topics in Microbiology. Retrieved 2017-03-06.
  5. 1 2 Galatowitsch, Sheila (March 1997). "Peel-off and washable mats compared, contrasted". Solid State Technology. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
  6. "Guideline for Prevention of Surgical Site Infection". U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 1999. Retrieved 2017-03-06.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .