The Protective Performance of Process Operators’ Protective Clothing and Exposure Limits under Low Thermal Radiation Conditions

Author:

Heus Ronald,Kingma Boris R. M.,van Berlo Birgit M. A.,Mol Douwe,Daanen Hein A. M.,Kuklane KalevORCID

Abstract

During the early stage of a fire, a process operator often acts as the first responder and may be exposed to high heat radiation levels. The present limit values of long- (>15 min) and short-term exposure (<5 min), 1.0 and 1.5 kW/m2, respectively, have been set using physiological models and manikin measurements. Since human validation is essentially lacking, this study investigated whether operators’ protective clothing offers sufficient protection during a short-term deployment. Twelve professional firefighters were exposed to three radiation levels (1.5, 2.0, and 2.5 kW/m2) when wearing certified protective clothing in front of a heat radiation panel in a climatic chamber (20 °C; 50% RH). The participants wore only briefs (male) or panties and a bra (female) and a T-shirt under the operators’ clothing. Skin temperatures were continuously measured at the chest, belly, forearm, thigh, and knee. The test persons had to stop if any skin temperature reached 43 °C, at their own request, or when 5 min of exposure was reached. The experiments showed that people in operators’ clothing can be safely exposed for 5 min to 1.5 kW/m2, up to 3 min to 2.0 kW/m2, and exposure to 2.5 kW/m2 or above must be avoided unless the clothing can maintain an air gap.

Funder

Netherlands Standardization Institute

Publisher

MDPI AG

Subject

General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,General Immunology and Microbiology,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

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