Advanced Fire Fighter Suit Program at NC State

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Advanced Fire Fighter Suit Programat NC State
Dr. Roger Barker
Technologies for Critical Incident Preparedness
Conference San Francisco, CA November 7, 2007
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Presentation

• The Project
• The Project Team
• The Development Process
• Garment Design
• Science and Testing
• Project Outcome

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(No Transcript)
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Unusual Challenges Opportunities

• Combination of Government, University, Industry,
  and End-Users.
• Emerging science and changing standards.
• Adding protection while meeting existing flame
  thermal standards.
• Wide range of chemical threats.
• Breathable barrier requirement.
• Extraordinary durability requirements.
• Designing the application while materials are
  still in development.
• Getting feedback from end-users prior to getting
  everything right.
• No "tradeoffs" mentality.

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Project Goal
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Project Keys

• Demonstrate clear understanding of fire fighter
  first responder needs.
• Assemble world class research team.
• Deliver research product valued by fire fighter
  community.

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Project Team
Globe Design Team
Fire Fighters
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Integrated Technologies

• A systems engineering approach
• Incorporating advanced composite layers developed
  by this project.
• Input gathered from fire fighters
• Particular attention paid to garment seams, seals
  and interfaces.

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Materials
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Technologies - Thermal Liner
Next-generation non-woven thermal liner with
reduced weight and bulk.
NCSU Nonwoven Cooperative Research Centers
(NCRC) new state-of-the-art pilot facility.
Advanced fibers, the highest performing materials
in the industry, blended to optimize performance.
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Technology Advances

• Garment Design
• Improved ergonomics
• Improved functionality
• Improved performance

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Voice of the Customer
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Key Garment Requirements

• Must be everyday turnout gear first and
  foremost.
• Must be designed for escape and rescue of viable
  victims.
• Must have all equipment required for protection
  to be included on the garment at all times.
• Must be reliably donned without the use of a
  buddy.
• Must not increase the level of fire fighter heat
  stress.
• Must meet all the performance requirements of
  NFPA 1971 and CBRN option.

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Solution Deployable Protection
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Double Jacket System
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Zip-Away Collar
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Inner Jacket Hood - Mask Interface
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Glove To Jacket Interface
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FITLACE System
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SCBA to Pant Interface
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Gusseted Storm Fly / Waist Belt
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BOOTCOLLAR Interface to Pant Cuffs
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Fire Fighter Feedback Department Presentations

• Broward County, FL
• Buffalo, NY
• Clark County, NV
• Fairfax County, VA
• Honolulu, HI
• Houston, TX
• Las Vegas, NV
• Los Angeles, CA
• Miami, FL

• Minneapolis, MN
• Montgomery County, MD
• New York, NY
• Region 13, PA
• Phoenix, AZ
• Pittsburgh, PA
• Portland, OR
• Raleigh, NC
• San Antonio, TX

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Fire Fighter Feedback - Surveys

• Questionnaire at conferences 85 positive
• Questionnaire for test subjects 83 positive

Best and most frequent response at trade
shows This looks like our current gear!
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Materials to full system testing evaluation
NC State University Textile Protection Comfort
Center
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Results of Performance Tests on Prototypes

• Thermal Protection
• Chemical Protection
• Heat Stress (THL)

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Thermal Protection
Passes NFPA 1971 requirements TPP, Flame
resistance, and heat resistance tests.
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NCSU PyroMan Garment Testing
A 8.0 body burn
B 6.0 body burn
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Chemical Testing Results

• Liquid chemical penetration
• Passes NFPA 1971 Requirements
• Battery Acid, AFFF, Chlorine, Hydrological fluid,
  Gasoline surrogate
• Viral penetration
• Passes NFPA 1971 Requirements
• ?174 viral simulate
• CBRN Chemical permeation
• TIC permeation test capability still under
  development
• Membrane development ongoing to meet all
  permeation requirements

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MIST Test

• Evaluates all aspects of ensemble performance
  an individual wears the protective ensemble in an
  agent simulant environment.
• Test conditions mimic conditions of use,
  including effect of different individuals on
  protective performance.
• Simulant/ agent correlations are performed in
  laboratory

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MIST Test Results

• Obtain a Protection Factor at every body location

PF MeSoutside / MeSinside
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MIST Test Performance Summary

• Local PAD Performance (Mustard simulation)
• Passed NFPA 1971 Requirement
• PPDF gt 360
• 26 X Better than Control
• Systemic Performance (Nerve Agent simulation)
• Passed NFPA 1971 Requirement
• PPDF gt362 for entire body
• 30 X Better than Control

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Comfort Assessment

• NFPA 1971 guarded hot plate THL requirement
• gt205 W/m2

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Comfort Assessment
Provides more realistic THL numbers - Compared to
the flat sweating hot plate
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Physiological Wear Tests
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• Tasks derived from ASTM F 1154-99 "Standard
  Practices for Qualitatively Evaluating the
  Comfort, Fit, Function, and Integrity Chemical
  Protective Suit Ensembles."
• Conducted twice to learn and as a timed event.
• Average rating on performance of exercises
  tasks showed no significant difference between
  control and prototype.

Ladder Climb
Dummy Drag
Box Lifts
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Field Evaluations FDNY Fairfax County
FD Philadelphia FD
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Comments

• No problem with coat or pants.
• Mobility is fine.
• Light, plenty of room.
• Very comfortable.
• Turnout gear is comfortable, flexible, and very
  mobile.

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Summary

• Demonstrated CB Turnout Prototype
• Structural fire fighter garment
• Significantly enhanced performance against toxic
  TICs TIMs and chemical agents
• Based on MIST results vs. control
• THL and ergonomics comparable to current turnout
  systems designed for everyday use

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What this project is about Protecting Fire
Fighters/ Responders
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Successful Collaboration Between
Government
Academia
Industry