Toxic Chemicals Transfer Through Clothing Layers of Fire Suits (InToxFIRE)

State of the Problem

The increasingly adverse impact of toxic fire products on fire-fighters’ health and wellbeing are of a world-wide concern. The occurrence of cancer among the fire-fighters is alarmingly high in both developed and developing countries. Although fire and rescue services follow strict regulations regarding the decontamination of fire suits after the fire-fighting, this approach only seems to tackle toxicants from the fire effluent that adhered to the surfaces of the outer clothing. Unfortunately, the ability of the toxic products to permeate and get transferred through the layers of fire suits towards the skin of first responders during firefighting has not been investigated adequately.
The knowledge of the nature of the transferred toxicants and, most importantly, determining their quantities are of paramount importance for fire-fighters, manufacturers of personal protective equipment (PPE) and clothing, regulators, health and safety specialists who are seeking robust and long term-solutions to the problems of repeated exposure to toxic combustion products.

Aim

The InToxFire project will investigate whether elements of fire-fighters clothing allow the transport of toxic chemicals, present in the fire effluent, towards the skin. The project will also determine the nature and concentration levels of toxic chemicals on both sides of the clothing layers. The use of developed analytical methods, heat transfer and advanced computational models will fully quantify the transport of toxic chemicals through the layers of fire-fighters’ coats. The data generated through this project will assist in the necessary changes of the current design of fire-fighters’ suits to protect fire and rescue personnel from toxicological impacts of the constituents of fire effluent. The generated evidence base will contribute to safer working conditions of fire-fighters, thus improving health and well-being of first responders.

Work Packages (WP) of the project

An Advisory and Experts Panel (AEP) has established at the start of the project and its membership is open to practically all stakeholders in the UK, USA, Europe and Australia to include first responders, academics, regulators, manufacturers of PPE, Health & Safety representatives, etc. The purpose is to engage as many stakeholders as possible to underpin the project outputs quality, its visibility, and facilitate the dissemination process.

WP1: Project Management & Coordination

WP1 aims to coordinate and supervise all project activities among the research team members, monitor quality and timings of project results, carry out the overall administrative and financial management of the project, and to ensure the effective dissemination of the outcomes and the achievement of the impact. The objective of WP1 is also in the provision of consistent project results and the efficient communication within the project.
The WP1 includes the following tasks:

• Task 1: Coordination of Management Group. Overseeing implementation of planned activities and tasks by all members of project team.
• Task 2: Financial administration of the project. Preparation of quarterly and final finance reports.
• Task 3: Launching, maintaining and regularly updating the project's website.

WP2: Experimental studies via small-scale Testing set up

The objective of WP2 is to test small-sized samples of fire suits and to identify and quantify the toxicants, which remain on the surface or/and get transferred through the layers of firefighters’ suits.
WP2 will involve the laboratory-based work and completion of the following tasks:

• Task 4: Studying transfer of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and water-soluble products of combustion through layers of firefighters' clothing. This task will be based on the qualitative methods of analysis (GC-MS or LC-MS) with the purpose of establishing the nature of chemicals adhered to the surface, trapped, or transferred through the layers of clothing.

• Task 5: Qualitative and quantitative chemical analysis of fire condensates, in organic and in aqueous phases, using GC-MS, LC-MS, FT-IR, and SEM.

• Task 6: Selecting parameters for medium-scale tests. The comprehensive analysis of the data obtained in Tasks 3 and 4, will allow the researchers to identify the conditions leading to the production of the highest amounts of toxicants going through the protective clothing layers.

WP3: Medium-Scale Testing

WP3 is focused on investigating the impact of selected parameters on the permeation of toxicants of the highest concern as identified in WP2.

• Task 7: Investigation of heat and toxins transfer through clothing layers in controlled environments, using tube furnaces and fire propagation apparatus. Along with chemical transfer study, the heat transfer will be studied on the similar scale for testing heat/flame transfer through clothing layers.

• Task 8: Determination, using developed analytical methods, of highest concern toxicants. The developed analytical models will be used to quantify the carcinogenic toxicants formed under certain conditions in the controlled environments.

• Task 9: Generating dataset for evidence base that correlates nature and concentration levels of toxicants with stages of fire, potential health issues, and adhesion on or penetration of toxic products of combustion.

WP4: Numerical Modelling.

This work package will be focused on numerical modelling and analysis of heat and mass transfer through firefighters’ clothing. The simple heat transfer model will allow the investigation of the heat transfer in the clothing layers under various experimental conditions. The advanced FEA model will be used to analyse in detail the effects of design parameters in firefighters’ clothing, including environmental temperature, type, thickness and porosity of the clothing materials and flow rate, on the penetration of particulates though the layers.

• Task 10: Training, development and validation of simple heat transfer and advanced FEA models for the modelling of heat and mass transfers through clothing layers.

• Task 11: Parametric studies using FEA on the effects of design parameters, including environmental temperature, type, thickness and porosity of the materials and flow rate, on the penetration of particulates.

WP5: Dissemination & Communication.

This WP targets the continued outreach activities and dissemination of the project’s outcomes to stakeholders through dedicated workshops, seminars, webinars and discussion and focus groups. These outreach activities will provide a platform for sharing and exchange of knowledge, discussions with manufacturers of first responders’ PPE, keeping the industry up to date with main developments, particularly in relation to sensing technology, resilient and sustainable materials. Moreover, The following tasks are planned for this work package:

• Task 12: Publishing project findings in high-impact journals, presentations at international conferences and meetings, webinars with FRS, manufacturers of PPE and academics. Throughout the duration of the project, the team intends to publish the research findings of small- and medium- scale testing and numerical modelling of heat and toxins transfer through layers of firefighters’ clothing in peer-reviewed journals and present them at high quality conferences across Europe and the USA. More information about these outcomes will be provided regularly on the related tabs of the website. In addition, the team will actively participate in the events aimed at firefighters to be held on the island of Ireland and will develop a set of teaching materials to be used in their training.

• Task 13: Regular discussion groups with national and international firemen.

• Task 14: Developing tailored training materials for Fire & Rescue Service (FRS) groups.

• Task 15: Dissemination Workshops. Three one-day workshops are planned, one workshop per each year of the project. The first workshop will be organised in the on-line format via MS Teams platform. The second and the third workshops will be run in a central location in Dublin to attract a large audience of interested stakeholders.

WP6: Recommendations and Guidelines.

WP6 is planned in three-fold, i.e. to propose amendments to the current design of firefighters' protective clothing after consultation with the industry; to provide recommendations to regulations on current testing procedures of firefighters’ PPE; and to review and update the guidelines on dressing-undressing, decontamination of fire suits, and training of FRS.
These targets will be achieved by implementing the following tasks:

• Task 16: Propose amendments to current design specification of firefighters' protective clothing, with industrial involvement.

• Task 17: Recommendations on enhancement of current testing of firefighters’ PPE. For maximizing the impact on policy makers, the recommendations on testing regimes will be summarised in a report and sent to key national professional bodies in the UK, Europe and USA to ignite further discussions and encourage strategic changes in the existing practices.

• Task 18: Modified guidance on decontamination, procedures and training of FRS. At the end of the project, the scientific findings and evidence will allow the research team to prepare an updated guidance on the procedures related to decontamination, robing-disrobing and training of first responders. The final document will be approved by the members of the AEP.

Funding

Funded by UL Research Institutes (USA), InToxFire is a 3-year project that will improve our knowledge about toxic chemicals from fires moving through layers of fire suits.