An institute in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, has developed an anti-bacteria mask which can be reused for eight hours a day for four days to address mask shortages.

The two-layer mask has titanium dioxide and silver in its elements, which decompose organic matters through photocatalytic reaction and curbs the multiplication of microorganisms.

The material significantly curbs a number of pathogenic bacteria, including bacillus coli and Candida albicans, as well as avian flu and H3N2 flu viruses, in tests by the Academy of Military Medical Sciences and West China Hospital of Sichuan University.

The mask has passed third-party lab test, according to Liang Jiachao, manager for technological park management of the Guangzhou Institute of Microbiology.

The mask outperforms the medical surgery mask and medical KN95 mask in the reusable function in an experiment on people aged between 22 and 35 who wore the masks for eight hours a day for three days.

Worn for eight hours a day for four days, the mask can filter 95 percent of the bacteria, lifting the efficiency in medical mask use and reducing resource consumption and pollution of the environment, Liang said.

In a joint effort with Guangzhou High-Tech Investment Group Co, the production capacity now stands at 15,000 masks a day.

New mask-making equipment is being tested that would greatly boost the production capacity, he said.