- Author
- Jensen, R. L., Jr.
- Title
- Thermal Performance of Fire Fighters' Protective Clothing.
- Coporate
- 3M Center, St. Paul, MN
- Keywords
- protective clothing | fire fighters | performance evaluation | heat transfer | test methods | instruments | burns (injuries) | thermocouples | water vapor
- Identifiers
- moisture barrier
- Abstract
- The purpose of this paper is to study thermal protection of wet and dry fire fighter protective clothing. In specific, it analyzes fire fighter protective clothing equipped with impermeable attachments on the exterior of the garment. Tests were conducted using an apparatus and method developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. The apparatus, and the new test method, allows for basic protective clothing assemblies to be studied while exposed to various heat flux environments. Thermal exposures ranged from a minimum of 0.25 W/cm2 to 6.0 W/cm2. These exposures produced thermal environments that theoretically approximate conditions ranging from typical fire fighting thermal exposures to a post-flashover fire environment. The thermal exposure tests ranged in time from several seconds to as much as thirty minutes. In addition to variations in thermal flux, protective clothing assemblies were also tested with various amounts of moisture applied to different portions of the garment system. During these tests, various designs of protective clothing assemblies were studied. All basic test specimen designs replicated protective clothing assemblies that are presently being used by the fire service. Modified designs of protective clothing assemblies also were tested to study variations in thermal performance.