The Science Behind
Fire Resistant Clothing
Fire-resistant
clothing, also known as FR clothing, are mainly designed for protecting wearers
from flames, extreme heat, and explosions. These clothes will not catch fire
easily; even if they do, they don’t spread fast. They extinguish themselves and
provide enough time for the wearer to get away from that environment. This is particularly crucial for those in hazardous occupations, such as firefighting where wildland forest firefighting clothing is absolutely mandatory.
The Science Behind Fire Resistant Clothing |
In industries where
the employees tend to get injured of fire, heat or electricity, these FR
clothing are a must. Also, it has been made compulsory in many companies and
industries, keeping the safety of the workers in mind.
But how many know the science behind how these fire-resistant clothes work. Also, what materials are
used and why they are used? To answer these questions, a list of scientific
validation of these FR clothes is followed:
1) The self-extinguishing fabric:
This FR clothing by
resisting ignition and self-extinguishing while exposed to the fire protects
the wearer. It is made up of 100% pure cotton, and that resist the fire to
spread faster. Also, it is a well-known fact that cotton doesn’t catch fire
quickly; it takes time.
Hence, this
particular fabric, blended with several other chemicals, provides enough time
to the wearer to get away from the situation. That is why this fire retardant clothing is said to be slow-burning and self-extinguishing.
There are some other
most popular fabrics as well that are used for their flame-resistant qualities.
Those are modacrylic, Nomex, and Kevlar.
2) Solid-state technology:
The solid-state
technologies are applied to the fabrics used to manufacture fire-resistant
clothing. This technology resists ignition by creating a solid char. Due to
this, a barrier is created between the fabric and char. These technologies are applied in two ways.
One, an FR coating is
applied on the surface of the treated fabrics. But the FR coating does not
stick to the fabric permanently. Second, the FR coating is applied to the
surface of engineering fabrics. There it creates a permanent bond with the
fabrics.
These technologies
can also be used to protect the wearer from molten metal splash, welding
exposure, electric arc flashes or flash fires.
3) Thermally stable technology:
Inherent or thermally
stable fibers are difficult to melt by fire, decompose or breakdown under
extreme heat. As a result of this, no flame can burn the fabric and gets
quickly self-extinguished. These thermally stable technologies do not get
washed off.
Also, it is a strong,
long-lasting, and tear-resistant FR protection. When this technology is
amalgamated with other FR technologies coated fabric like nylon, polyester,
rayon or cotton. They become much more durable and create stronger protection
against short-term thermal hazards.
4) Fuel-activated or gas-state technology:
This gas-state the technique also known as fuel-activated, FR technology helps in eliminating
fuels produced by the fire. It traps those radical molecules created by the
flame. When it is brought to heat, the molecules break and get bind to the
radicals that the flame produces. This whole procedure not only reduces the
fire’s fuel but stops the flame’s chain from spreading or reacting.
This type of
technology is mainly preferred for electrical industries. This gas-state
technology proves to be advantageous when it comes to protecting from arc
flashes. Also, these fibers can be mixed with non-FR fibers that make the
technology available at a lower price.
So, these are the
scientific techniques that are used to manufacture these FR clothing. Their aim
is to protect the employee not only by resisting the fire fuel chain but also
to be comfortable, breathable, and easy to move. So that it doesn’t bother or
make the wearer feel uncomfortable while working.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please Leave a Comment to show some Love ~ Thanks