Development of A U. S. Coast Guard Chemical Response Suit
Abstract
This report describes the U. S. Coast Guard's development of a Chemical Response Suit designed to provide encapsulating protection for Coast Guard personnel against hazardous chemicals. This work follows earlier Coast Guard efforts described in CG-D-24-86, Early Development of a Hazardous Chemical Protective Ensemble, to select protective materials design a suit, and test the performance of the finished product. The development was divided into several phases including: (1) further testing of originally selected garment materials, (2) investigation of alternative materials, (3) selection and evaluation of suit materials/components, and (4) design and testing of the overall suit. The result of the development was a selection of a proprietary Teflon/Nomex laminate (Challenge TM) which exhibited much greater chemical resistance than earlier materials. This material was tested against over 112 chemicals. Selected Secondary materials include a 10 mil FEP film visor, TFE film gloves, and a neoprene/brass zipper. These components and primary garments seams were each tested against batteries of chemicals to determine their chemical resistance relative to the garment material. An encapsulating suit design was adopted which provides uniform protection to the wearer. The suit's overall evaluation included pressure testing, the measurement of suit intrusion coefficients, an unmanned simulated exposure to hydrogen fluoride vapor, and field heat stress testing. Keywords: Chemical protective suit, Teflon nomex laminate, Material chemical resistance testing, Permeation resistance Testing, Intrusion coefficients.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1987
- Accession Number
- ADA186402
Entities
People
- Jeffrey O. Stull
Organizations
- United States Coast Guard