Chemical and Biological Protection and Detection in Fabrics for Protective Clothing
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Chemical and
Biological Protection and Detection in Fabrics for Protective Clothing
Heidi L. Schreuder-Gibson, Quoc Truong, John E. Walker, Jeffery R. Owens, Joseph D. Wander, and Wayne E. Jones Jr. Abstract Military, firefighter, law enforcement, and medical personnel require high-level protection when dealing with chemical and biological threats in many environments ranging from combat to urban, agricultural, and industrial. Current protective clothing is based on full barrier protection, such as hazardous materials (HAZMAT) suits, or permeable adsorptive protective overgarments, such as those used by the U.S. military. New protective garment systems are envisioned that contain novel features, such as the capability to selectively block toxic chemicals, to chemically destroy toxic materials that contact the fabric, and to detect hazardous agents on the surface of the fabric. New technologies being built into advanced fabrics for enhanced chemical and biological protection include selectively permeable membranes, reactive nanoparticles, reactive nanofibers, biocidal fabric treatments, and conductive-polymer indicators on optical fibers. Keywords: advanced fabrics, antimicrobial treatments, biological protection, chemical detection, chemical protection, permeable membranes.
Introduction Chemical and biological (CB) protective clothing is available with many different fabric materials for specific applications. Hazardous materials (HAZMAT) response suits are made from impermeable filmlaminated fabrics, fully sealing the wearer from the passage of air, vapors, and liquids. One such suit is the military’s toxicological agents protective (TAP) suit, designed to be worn in rugged terrain that may be contaminated with persistent toxic chemicals. It must have a surface that is easily decontaminated with liquids for a minimum of
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five reuses. The suit is made with Chemfab’s Challenge Ultra Pro fabric system. This is a multilayer laminated fabric system that consists of five alternating layers of fluoropolymer [nonporous poly(tetrafluoroethylene) films] and Nomex nonwoven aramid fiber and a conductive layer. The TAP suit is specialty equipment, designed to work with a self-contained breathing apparatus. In contrast, standard-issue military chemical protection is provided through liquid repellency in conjunction with vapor and air exchange in order to
maintain comfort over longer operational periods at higher workloads. This is accomplished through the use of a semipermeable adsorptive carbon liner within the clothing. The carbon layer within the fabric provides protection by adsorbing vapors that pass into the clothing. For the military, a suite of chemical protective suits is available for the soldier, each garment choice meeting different protection levels, depending upon the demands of the mission. For example, lightweight, flexible garments have been the mainstay of troop protection for the U.S. military. The battledress over-garment (BDO) and the recently introduced joint service lightweight integrated suit te
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