Exposure Risks and Potential Control Measures for a Fire Behavior Lab Training Structure: Part B—Chemical Gas Concentrations
-
Published:2023-07-21
Issue:
Volume:
Page:
-
ISSN:0015-2684
-
Container-title:Fire Technology
-
language:en
-
Short-container-title:Fire Technol
Author:
Horn Gavin P.ORCID, Stakes Keith, Neumann Danielle L., Madrzykowski Daniel, Fent Kenneth W.
Abstract
AbstractFirefighters’ or instructors’ exposure to airborne chemicals during live-fire training may depend on fuels being burned, fuel orientation and participants’ location within the structure. This study was designed to evaluate the impact of different control measures on exposure risk to combustion byproducts during fire dynamics training where fuel packages are mounted at or near the ceiling. These measures included substitution of training fuels (low density wood fiberboard, oriented strand board (OSB), pallets, particle board, plywood) and adoption of engineering controls such as changing the location of the instructor and students using the structure. Experiments were conducted for two different training durations: the typical six ventilation cycle (six-cycle) and a shorter three ventilation cycle (three-cycle) with a subset of training fuels. In Part A of this series, we characterized the fire dynamics within the structure, including the ability of each fuel to provide an environment that achieves the training objectives. Here, in Part B, airborne chemical concentrations are reported at the location where fire instructors would typically be operating. We hypothesized that utilizing a training fuel package with solid wood pallets would result in lower concentrations of airborne contaminants at the rear instructor location than wood-based sheet products containing additional resins and/or waxes. In the six-cycle experiments (at the rear instructor location), OSB-fueled fires produced the highest median concentrations of benzene and 1,3 butadiene, plywood-fueled fires produced the highest total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations, particle board-fueled fires produced the highest methyl isocyanate concentrations, and pallet-fueled fires produced the highest hydrogen chloride concentrations. All fuels other than particle board produced similarly high levels of formaldehyde at the rear instructor location. The OSB fuel package created the most consistent fire dynamics over six-cycles, while fiberboard resulted in consistent fire dynamics only for the first three cycles. In the follow-on three-cycle experiment, PAH, benzene, and aldehyde concentrations were similar for the OSB and fiberboard-fueled fires. Air sampling did not identify any clear differences between training fires from burning solid wood pallets and those that incorporate wood-based sheet products for this commonly employed fuel arrangement with fuels mounted high in the compartment. However, it was found that exposure can be reduced by moving firefighters and instructors lower in the compartment and/or by moving the instructor in charge of ventilation from the rear of the structure (where highest concentrations were consistently measured) to an outside position.
Funder
Federal Emergency Management Agency
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Subject
Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality,General Materials Science,Building and Construction
Reference59 articles.
1. Demers PA, DeMarini DM, Fent KW, Glass DC, Hansen J, Adetona O, Andersen MH, Freeman L, Caban-Martinez AJ, Daniels RD, Driscoll TR, Goodrich JM, Graber JM, Kirkham TL, Kjaerheim K, Kriebel D, Long AS, Main LC, Oliveira M, Peters S, et al. (2022) Carcinogenicity of occupational exposure as a firefighter. The Lancet: Oncology, S1470-2045(22)00390-4 2. Casjens S, Brüning T, Taeger D (2020) Cancer risks of firefighters: a systematic review and meta-analysis of secular trends and region-specific differences. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 93:839–852 3. Daniels RD, Kubale TL, Yiin JH, Dahm MM, Hales TR, Baris D, Zahm SH, Beaumont JJ, Water KM, Pinkerton LE (2014) Mortality and cancer incidence in a pooled cohort of US firefighters from San Francisco, Chicago and Philadelphia (1950–2009). Occup Environ Med 71(6):388–397 4. Daniels RD, Bertke S, Dahm MM, Yiin JH, Kubale TL, Hales TR, Baris D, Zahm SH, Beaumont JJ, Waters KM, Pinkerton LE (2015) Exposure-response relationships for select cancer and non-cancer health outcomes in a cohort of US firefighters from San Francisco, Chicago and Philadelphia (1950–2009). Occup Environ Med 72(10):699–705 5. Glass D, Sim M, Pircher S, Del Monaco A, Dimitriadis C, Miosge J (2014) Final report Australian firefighters’ health study. Monash Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, Melbourne
Cited by
3 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献
|
|