Nanostructured Polymer Membranes for Chemical Protective Clothing
Abstract
A series of materials were evaluated for their potential use as breathable (high water transport) barriers (low chemical agent transport) for military and civilian protective clothing apparel. The vapor transmission rates and effective permeabilities of water and dimethyl methyl phosphonate (DMMP, simulant for chemical agent Sarin) through commercial and experimental polymeric membranes were measured using a modified ASTM method E-96-95. A variety of different materials from different companies were examined, unfortunately some can not be named due to proprietary restrictions. Materials examined included expanded PTFE, Nafion 117(registered), sulfonated polystyrene- polyethylene-ran- polybutylene- polystyrene, sulfonated polystyrene- polyisobutylene- polystyrene, as well as four experimental and commercial membranes (A, B, C, and D). Results demonstrate that laminated membrane A had the highest breathability (effective permeability of water vapor), however experimental laminated material C possessed the highest selectivity with sufficient breathability, where selectivity is defined as the ratio of water permeability to DMMP permeability. Based on the results from this study, material C presents the greatest potential for a breathable barrier material for a chemical protective clothing application.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2004
- Accession Number
- ADA433566
Entities
People
- Dawn M. Crawford
- Eugene G. Napadensky
- James M. Sloan
- Yossef A Elabd
Organizations
- United States Army Research Laboratory