- Author
- Birky, M. M. | Einhorn, I. N. | Grunnett, M. L. | Packham, S. C. | Petajan, J. H. | Seader, J. D.
- Title
- Physiological and Toxicological Effects of the Products of Thermal Decomposition from Polymeric Materials.
- Coporate
- National Bureau of Standards, Gaithersburg, MD Utah Univ., Salt Lake City
- Report
- NBS SP 411,
- Distribution
- Available from Government Printing Office
- Book or Conf
- National Bureau of Standards. Fire Safety Research. Proceeding of a Symposium. August 22, 1973., Gaithersburg, MD, 105-124 p., 1973
- Keywords
- combustion | polymers | pyrolysis | smoke | toxic gases | toxicity | thermal decomposition | thermal degradation | weight loss
- Abstract
- A program that combines the capabilities of the College of Medicine and the College of Engineering of The University Utah has been instituted to evaluate the physiological and toxicological effects of the products of thermal degradation and combustion of cellulose, a polyvinyl chloride, a flexible polyurethane, and wood (Douglas fir). The products produced from these materials are beign identified and quantified with a gas charomatograph-mass spectrometer-computer system. in addition, a National Burea of standards smoke chamber has been modified with a weight loss transducer to correlate, on a continuous basis, the quantities of smoke produced with sample weight loss. Extensive studies on the effects of these degradation products on rats is in progress. The results of exposure of the rats to carbon monoxide are reported. All of the laboratory results are being correlated with full-scale fire studies at the National Bureau of Standards.