Hazmat Suit
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A hazmat suit is a piece of
personal protective equipment Personal protective equipment (PPE) is protective clothing, helmets, goggles, or other garments or equipment designed to protect the wearer's body from injury or infection. The hazards addressed by protective equipment include physical, elect ...
that consists of an impermeable whole-body or one piece garment worn as protection against hazardous materials. Such suits are often combined with self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) to ensure a supply of breathable air. Hazmat suits are used by firefighters, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, researchers, personnel responding to toxic spills, specialists cleaning up contaminated facilities, and workers in toxic environments.


History

An early primitive form of the hazmat suit arose during
bubonic plague Bubonic plague is one of three types of Plague (disease), plague caused by the Bacteria, bacterium ''Yersinia pestis''. One to seven days after exposure to the bacteria, flu-like symptoms develop. These symptoms include fever, headaches, and ...
epidemics, when European plague doctors of the 16th and 17th centuries wore distinctive
costume Costume is the distinctive style of dress and/or makeup of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch—in short, culture. The term also was traditionally used to describe typica ...
s consisting of bird-like beak masks and large overcoats while treating victims of the bubonic plague. At the time, it was thought that the inhalation of "bad air" was the cause of disease (a theory known as the
miasma theory The miasma theory (also called the miasmic theory) is an abandoned medical theory that held that diseases—such as cholera, chlamydia, or plague—were caused by a ''miasma'' (, Ancient Greek for 'pollution'), a noxious form of "bad air", a ...
), so the bird-like beak masks functioned as respirators that contained aromatic items such as herbs and dried flowers. The modern hazmat suit is believed to originate from the Manchurian plague of 1910–1911, wherein Malayan physician Wu Lien-teh promoted the use of various forms of
personal protective equipment Personal protective equipment (PPE) is protective clothing, helmets, goggles, or other garments or equipment designed to protect the wearer's body from injury or infection. The hazards addressed by protective equipment include physical, elect ...
to prevent the spread of the
pneumonic plague Pneumonic plague is a severe lung infection caused by the bacterium '' Yersinia pestis''. Symptoms include fever, headache, shortness of breath, chest pain, and coughing. They typically start about three to seven days after exposure. It is o ...
.


Capabilities


Overview

The
United States Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the Interior minister, interior, Home Secretary ...
defines a hazmat suit as "an overall garment worn to protect people from hazardous materials or substances, including chemicals, biological agents, or radioactive materials." More generally, hazmat suits may provide protection from: ; Chemical agents: through the use of appropriate barrier materials like
teflon Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is a synthetic fluoropolymer of tetrafluoroethylene, and has numerous applications because it is chemically inert. The commonly known brand name of PTFE-based composition is Teflon by Chemours, a spin-off from ...
, heavy PVC or
rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Types of polyisoprene ...
and
Tyvek Tyvek () is a brand of synthetic flashspun high-density polyethylene fibers. The name ''Tyvek'' is a registered trademark of the American multinational chemical company DuPont, which discovered and commercialized Tyvek in the late 1950s and e ...
; Nuclear agents: possibly through radiation shielding in the lining, but more importantly by preventing direct contact with or inhalation of radioactive particles or gas ; Biological agents: through fully sealed systems—often at
overpressure Overpressure (or blast overpressure) is the pressure caused by a shock wave over and above normal atmospheric pressure. The shock wave may be caused by sonic boom or by explosion An explosion is a rapid expansion in volume of a given amoun ...
to prevent contamination even if the suit is damaged or using powered air purifying respirators with full hoods and protective suits to prevent exposure (level C protection level) ; Fire/high temperatures: usually by a combination of insulating and reflective materials which reduce the effects (see also fire proximity suit) The hazmat suit generally includes breathing air supplies to provide clean, uncontaminated air for the wearer. In
laboratory A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratories are found in a variety of settings such as schools ...
use, clean air may be supplied through attached hoses. This air is usually pumped into the suit at positive pressure with respect to the surroundings as an additional protective measure against the introduction of dangerous agents into a potentially ruptured or leaking suit. Working in a hazmat suit is very strenuous, as the suits tend to be less flexible than conventional work garments. With the exception of laboratory versions, hazmat suits can be hot and poorly ventilated (if at all). Therefore, use is usually limited to short durations of up to 2 hours, depending on the difficulty of the work. Level A (United States) suits, for example, are limited by their air supply to around 15–20 minutes of very strenuous work (such as a firefighting rescue in a building). However, OSHA/EPA protective level A suits/ensembles are not typically used in firefighting rescue, especially during a building/structure fire. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) compliant "turnout gear", and NIOSH-certified or CBRN self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) are the primary protection technologies for structure firefighting in the US.


Ratings


In the United States

Hazmat protective clothing is classified as any of Level A, B, C, or D, based upon the degree of protection they provide.Protective Clothing – Hazmat Gear
(from the Naval Sea Systems Command website)
;Level A: The highest level of protection against vapors, gases, mists, and particles is Level A, which consists of a fully encapsulating chemical entry suit with a full-facepiece self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). A person must also wear boots with steel toes and shanks on the outside of the suit and specially selected chemical-resistant gloves for this level of protection. The breathing apparatus is worn inside (encapsulated within) the suit. To qualify as Level A protection, an intrinsically safe two-way radio is also worn inside the suit, often incorporating voice-operated microphones and an earpiece speaker for monitoring the operations channel. ;Level B: Level B protection requires a garment (including SCBA) that provides protection against splashes from a hazardous chemical. Since the breathing apparatus is sometimes worn on the outside of the garment, Level B protection is not vapor-protective. Level B suits can also be fully encapsulating, which helps prevent the SCBA from becoming contaminated. It is worn when vapor-protective clothing (Level A) is not required. Wrists, ankles, facepiece and hood, and waist are secured to prevent any entry of splashed liquid. Depending on the chemical being handled, specific types of gloves and boots are donned. These may or may not be attached to the garment. The garment itself may be one piece or a two-piece hooded suit. Level B protection also requires the wearing of chemical-resistant boots with steel toes and shanks on the outside of the garment. As with Level A, chemical-resistant gloves and two-way radio communications are also required. ;Level C: Level C protection differs from Level B in the area of equipment needed for respiratory protection. The same type of garment used for Level B protection is worn for Level C. Level C protection allows for the use of respiratory protection equipment other than SCBA. This protection includes any of the various types of air-purifying respirators. People should not use this level of protection unless the specific hazardous material is known and its concentration can be measured. Level C equipment does not offer the protection needed in an oxygen deficient atmosphere. ;Level D: Level D protection does not protect the person from chemical exposure. Therefore, this level of protection can only be used in situations where a person has no possibility of contact with chemicals. A pair of coveralls or other work-type garment along with chemical-resistant footwear with steel toes and shanks are all that is required to qualify as Level D protection. Most firefighter turnout gear is considered to be Level D.


In Europe

Most suits used in Europe are covered by a set EU Norms, and divided into a total of six types (levels) of protection: * Type 1: Protects against liquid and gaseous chemicals. Gas tight. ( EN 943 part 1). More or less equivalent to US level A. * Type 2: Protects against liquid and gaseous chemicals. Non gas tight. (EN 943 part 1). More or less equivalent to US level B.1 * Type 3: Protects against liquid chemicals for a limited period. Liquid jet tight. ( EN 14605) * Type 4: Protects against liquid chemicals for a limited period. Liquid saturation tight. (EN 14605). More or less equivalent to US level C. * Type 5: Protects against airborne dry particulates for a limited period. ( EN ISO 13982-1). * Type 6: Protects against a light spray of liquid chemicals ( EN 13034). More or less equivalent to US level D. 1: Can be used in places where the chemical in gaseous form isn't harmful to the body exterior. Image:MHE - KBH Brandvaesen - HAZMAT 3a.jpg, Level A/type 1 suit.
SCBA A self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) is a respirator worn to provide an autonomous supply of breathable gas in an atmosphere that is immediately dangerous to life or health from a gas cylinder. They are typically used in firefighting a ...
is inside suit. Image:Strahlenschutz uebung.jpg, Level B/type 2 suit. SCBA is outside Image:Hazmat_DEA.jpg, Level C/type 4 suit. Image:Purple-nitrile-glove.jpg, Type 6 glove made of
nitrile rubber Nitrile rubber, also known as nitrile butadiene rubber, NBR, Buna-N, and acrylonitrile butadiene rubber, is a synthetic rubber derived from acrylonitrile (ACN) and butadiene. Trade names include Perbunan, Nipol, Krynac and Europrene. This rubber is ...
.


GOST System

In the
GOST GOST () refers to a set of international technical standards maintained by the Euro-Asian Council for Standardization, Metrology and Certification (EASC), a regional standards organization operating under the auspices of the Commonwealth of I ...
system of norms, EN 943 is equivalent to GOST 12.4.284.2-2014.


In Brazil

Following the American standards, there are 4 different types of suits, from A to D. The suits are known to the Brazilian military as ''Roupa Protetora Permeável de Combate'' (Protective Permeable Combat Clothing). There are within the Brazilian military several specialized hazmat regiments. The regiments were deployed during the FIFA 2014 World Cup,
2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...
in Rio de Janeiro, and the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
.


Types

Hazmat suits come in two variations: splash protection and gastight suits. The splash protection suits are designed to prevent the wearer from coming into contact with a liquid. These suits do not protect against gases or dust. Gastight suits additionally protect against gases and dust.


Gas/vapor protection

Such suits (level A in the US) are gas or
vapor In physics, a vapor (American English) or vapour (Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) is a substance in the gas phase at a temperature lower than its critical temperature,R ...
-tight, providing total encapsulation and the highest level of protection against direct and airborne chemical contact. They are typically worn with a self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) enclosed within the suit. These suits are typically constructed of several layers and, being airtight, include a release valve so the suit does not overinflate from air exhaled by the SCBA. The release valve does retain some air to keep some positive pressure ("overpressure") inside the suit. As noted, such suits are usually limited to just 15–20 minutes of use by their mobile air supply. With each suit described here, there is a manufactured device designed to protect the respiratory system of the wearer (called a
respirator A respirator is a device designed to protect the wearer from inhaling hazardous atmospheres including lead, lead fumes, vapors, gases and particulate matter such as dusts and airborne pathogens such as viruses. There are two main categories o ...
) while the suit/ensemble is used to protect skin exposed to potential hazardous dermal agents. A
respirator A respirator is a device designed to protect the wearer from inhaling hazardous atmospheres including lead, lead fumes, vapors, gases and particulate matter such as dusts and airborne pathogens such as viruses. There are two main categories o ...
may be something as simple as a headband strap filtering facepiece respirator (FFR); to a head harness negative pressure full face respirator (air-purifying respirator/APR); to a full face, tight fitting, closed breathing air; or open circuit, self-contained breathing apparatus (CC-SCBA or SCBA).


Splash protection

Such suits (level B in the US) are not vapor-tight and thus provide a lesser level of protection. They are, however, worn with an SCBA, which may be located inside or outside of the suit, depending on the type of suit (encapsulating or non-encapsulating). They more closely resemble the one-piece
Tyvek Tyvek () is a brand of synthetic flashspun high-density polyethylene fibers. The name ''Tyvek'' is a registered trademark of the American multinational chemical company DuPont, which discovered and commercialized Tyvek in the late 1950s and e ...
coveralls often seen used in construction and demolition work. Yet, Level B splash suits may also be fully encapsulating suits which are simply not airtight. Lesser protection (level C in the US) suits may be coveralls of treated material, or multi-piece combinations, sealed with tape. This kind of protection is still "proof" against many non-invasive substances, such as
anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis'' or ''Bacillus cereus'' biovar ''anthracis''. Infection typically occurs by contact with the skin, inhalation, or intestinal absorption. Symptom onset occurs between one ...
.
Hazmat training reveals dangers
' – ''
The Cincinnati Enquirer ''The Cincinnati Enquirer'' is a morning daily newspaper published by Gannett in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. First published in 1841, the ''Enquirer'' is the last remaining daily newspaper in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, altho ...
'', Monday 19 November 2001


See also

* * , new military equivalent of NBC (now with radiological) * * * , military equivalent * , military equivalent * , historical equivalent * * *


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hazmat Suit Environmental suits Personal protective equipment