- Author
- Levin, B. C. | Paabo, M. | Gurman, J. L. | Clark, H. M. | Yoklavich, M. F.
- Title
- Further Studies of the Toxicological Effects of Different Time Exposures to the Individual and Combined Fire Gases--Carbon Monoxide, Hydrogen Cyanide, Carbon Dioxide and Reduced Oxygen.
- Coporate
- National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD
- Book or Conf
- Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI). Polyurethanes 88. 31st Annual Technical/Marketing Conference. October 18-21, 1988, Philadelphia, PA, 249-252 p., 1988
- Keywords
- toxicity | carbon monoxide | hydrogen cyanide | carbon dioxide | oxygen | toxicology | animals | NBS toxicity test method
- Identifiers
- application of the N-gas model
- Abstract
- The Center for Fire Research is developing a model to predict the toxic interactions of the major gases produced in fires. The toxicity of individual gases, CO, CO2, reduced O2, and HCN, as well as various two, three and four gas combinations of these gases have been examined in Fischer 344 rats exposed for 30 minutes and observed for at least 14 days. Except for CO2, the combined toxicities of these gases is additive. Carbon dioxide interacts synergistically with the other gases. Other exposure times ranging from 5 to 60 minutes for the two gas combinations--CO and HCN and CO and CO2--have also been examined and found to be additive and synergistic, respectively. In most cases, sublethal concentrations of the individual gases were found to be lethal when combined. In additional experiments, a combination of the 30 minute LC50 levels of CO and a sublethan level of CO2 was found to decrease the time to death of the animals when compared to the effect of the same concentration of CO alone.