Different Types of Protective Clothing Against All Hazards

In the modern world, to perform the risky task, it is necessary to wear special clothing, i.e., protective clothing, in an especially risky environment. It is the responsibility of the employer to protect their employees from any harmful effects while working in any risky environment. The textiles or apparel, used for the protection of the human body or life while working in any risky conditions, are termed as protective clothing or special garments. In this article, we are discussing Different Types of Protective Clothing Against All Hazards.

What are some examples of protective clothing?

For example, a person working in a chemical plant may be affected by the chemicals that he is handling every day. To protect that person from the effects of chemicals, he should be protected by using chemical-resistant clothing. Same as Flame, and other Types of protective clothing.

8 Different Types of Protective Clothing List

There are different types of protective clothing which are listed in the below:

1. Protective clothing for naval and armed forces,
2. Heat and flame resistant clothing,
3. Radiant heat protective clothing,
4. Protective clothing for coal miners,
5. Firefighters protective clothing,
6. Protective clothing for a space shuttle,
7. Protective clothing for racing drivers,
8. Chemical resistant clothing or chemical protective clothing.

All the above types of protective clothing are explained in the following, with their images:

1. Protective Clothing for Naval and Armed Forces:

From the Different Types of Protective Clothing Against All Hazards, for the clothing of the armed forces and naval personnel, lightweight fire retardant fabric is too much needy. It is especially for that person who engaged in engineering works and working in the heated condition. Besides, their apparel or textiles should be susceptible to protect them from cold. This type of clothing should have buoyant characteristics.

Ballistic protection is one type of protective textile or clothing. This kind of clothing aims at protecting individuals from the steel fragments and bullets from exploding ammunition and hand-held weapons. The root idea of spreading the load over a massive area is still applied. It is so good to dissipate the energy of impact by breaking and deformation the protective material. A ballistic protective method is a complicated phenomenon involving the tensile properties, transverse velocity propagation, and the fine structure. The use of ultra-high modulus polyethylene (UHMPE) fibers produced by gel spinning has started in the manufacturing of ballistic protective fabrics in recent years.

2. Heat and Flame Resistant Clothing:

The people who are working in the steel mill, welding factory, molding factory, glass item manufacturing factory etc. have to face enough flame and heat daily. Hence, their life risk is higher. To save their body and life from the risk of flame and heat, it is necessary to provide them flame and heat resistant work wear. The human body and skin is heat sensitive. If human skin is subjected to 45°C, he feels burning effect and at 72°C, burning occurs in the skin, and blister is formed in the skin. If flame and heat or fire-resistant clothing is worn, under such risky condition, gets some time to save him.

10 Properties of Flame Resistant Clothing and Heat Resistant Clothing:

Some key properties of heat resistant and flame protective clothing have discussed in the below:

1. If it is necessary to work at very high temperature for longer period, the clothing used should be of higher thickness and very compactly woven. Because, higher the thickness of clothing, lower the compactness of the fabric and results higher the heat resistant property of the clothing. Because, lower density of clothing means higher volume of still air.
2. Still air shows better heat property. Higher the still air in a fabric, higher the heat resistant property of that fabric. There is a limit up to which still air can retain by a fabric. If fabric density is very low when still air cannot retain by the fabric, then that fabric shows lower heat resistant property.
3. If it is necessary to work at higher temperature for short time, then thicker fabric with more weight shows better heat resistant property. For example, in case of industrial gloves, thickness, weight and resiliency is important. Gloves made of jersey wool fabric having pile fibers shows good thermal resistance at 270°C for short period of time.
4. Molten iron, aluminum and magnesium splinter if drops on clothing, the clothing should be able to protect the human body from any damage. In this situation, clothing made of very heavy and thick woolen fabrics work satisfactorily. Protective clothing made of 540 grams per square meter thick woolen fabric can protect human body if 350ml. molten iron, steel, brass or copper falls on clothing.
5. To protect human body from molten splinter of aluminum or magnesium, protective clothing made of 270-350 grams per square meter woolen fabric is sufficient. For this purpose, the woolen fabric should be knitted structure as because knit structure shows better performance than woven structure.
6. Clothing made of zirpro woolen fabric and caliban finished cotton fabric can protect human body from modern splinter of aluminum. Clothing made of aluminized finished fabric also shows satisfactory performance but the surface of the fabric must be smooth so that molten splinter cannot sticks with the fabric surface.
7. Flame retardancy property of the clothing is considered at clothed situation when time takes to feel burning on the body or to form blister on the skin due to flame contact. Higher the safe protection time better the flame retardant clothing made of zirpro wool, aramid, glass and flame resistant cotton fabric subjected at 1200°C and found that to form blister on the sikn time takes more in case of clothing made of zirpro wool.
8. That means protective clothing made of zirpro wool works better against flame contact than the others. As per protection length of time, the above mentioned four types of fabrics are presented here as per merit- zirpro wool, 85/15 zirpro wool or glass fiber, aramid fiber and flame resistant cotton.
9. Experimentally, it is also found that flame protective clothing made of two ply zirpro wool fabric, the outer ply twill fabric of 290grams per square meter and inner ply rib fabric of 230grams per square meter shows longer time flame retardency than the 552 grams per square meter single ply zirpro wool fabric.
10. In case of flame protective clothing, two ply fabric shows better performance than the single ply heavier fabric as because in case of two ply fabric, entrapped still air between two ply shows better thermal resistance. When zirpro finish is done on woolen fabric then the finished fabric is called zirpro wool. Mix compound of titanium and zirconium is used for finishing wool fabric to increase flame retardency property on woolen fiber, is called zirpro finish. 

3. Radiant Heat Protective Clothing:

In nuclear plants, Officers and workers have to work regularly. Those are working at and near the source of radioactive raw materials are prone to frequent exposure to beta, alpha, and Gama radiations. Radiation protection is too much necessary for X-ray professionals and workers in cancer treatment centers and also other places subject to ionizing radiation.

An important purpose of most radiation protection programs at nuclear facilities is the protection of workers and officers from radioactive contamination while handling radioactive materials or working in radioactively contaminated environments. Protective textiles or clothing is extensively used to protect officers and workers from the contamination.

UV Protective Finish for Textiles:

The main object of the ultraviolet protective finish is to reduce a person’s UVR exposure. Electromagnetic radiations of wavelength between 150 and 400nm are known as Ultraviolet rays. About, 10% of the sun’s energy is in the form of ultraviolet radiations. Most of the noxious radiations absorb atmosphere which is emitted by the sun. Among those, only 5% of the harmful radiations reach to the surface of the earth. Ultra-violate soaks up phenyl benzotriazole and Benzotriazole are able to absorb the damaging ultra-violate rays of sunlight. Ultra-violate absorbers convert ultraviolet energy into harmless heat energy. The ultra-violate blocking capacity of a fiber can be improved by incorporating TiO2 into its structure.

4. Protective Clothing for Coal Miners:

Clothing for the coal miners should be flame resistant. Fabrics suitable for this purpose have been developed by IJIRA (Indian Jute Industries Research Association). The fabric is made of jute fibers as per ISO specification 4355-1997 and satisfied all requirements.

This type of fabrics is finished with flame retardant finishing agents. The fabric is normally 183 to 274cm wide, compactly woven and of low air permeability property. This type of fabric is finished with urea or phosphate by pad dry cure method. This fabric is used for making clothing for the coal miners, have been considered safe, comfortable and effective.

5. Fire Fighters Protective Clothing:

The people engaged in firefighting needs protective clothing which can save their body and life from the effect of heat and flame. It is sometimes found that the firefighters become injured or even dyed during fitting against fire. For that causes, it is mandatory for them to wear protective clothing or apparel to fight against fire.

What Type of Fabric Do Firefighters Wear? 

Firefighter suit should be made from three-ply fabric. The outer ply fabric should be flame retardant, middle ply fabric should be the vapor barrier and the inner ply fabric should be the thermal barrier. Outer layer fabric may be made from aramid fiber, blends of novoloid and aramid fiber or fire-resistant cotton. As an outer layer fabric, all the mentioned three types of fabric become embrittled within 10 seconds in contact to flame but the blended fabric of aramid and novoloid fibers are less brittle in such condition.

Firefighter suit made of above mentioned three types of outer ply fabric if used during firefighting; the wearer may be injured when in contact to flame for 28 to 50 seconds. The inner layer fabric is made of aramid fiber is not damaged in such situation. The middle layer fabric protects the user from the vapor and harmful chemicals fume when engaged in fitting against fire. But later may be sick due to the action of self-sweating and vapor. For that cause, the European firefighter’s suit is made without the middle layer (vapor barrier) fabric.

What Materials are Used in a Fireman’s Uniform?

As suitable clothing for firefighter, three-ply woolen fabrics may be used. The outer ply fabrics may be made of wool serge which is fine but densely woven fabric. The middle layer fabric is coarse and brushed woolen, works as heat resistant. The inner layer fabric works as lining made of lightweight cotton fabric.

As a firefighter clothing, the effectiveness of the clothing is related to the thickness of the clothing. Higher the thickness of the clothing betters the effectiveness of the clothing as firefighter suit. It should be kept in mind that excessive thickness of the clothing will be discomfort-able for the user due to the heavy weight of the suit.

Fireman Clothing Material Test:

Firefighter suit has been tested made from 56 types of fibers for their performance of fighting against fire. The fabrics were made from cotton, a mixture of different cellulosic fiber, aramid, wool, leather, asbestos, glass, and ceramic etc. as a firefighter suit, effectiveness of the clothing is more dependent on the thickness of clothing than the fiber type.

6. Protective Clothing for Space Shuttle:

NASA (National aeronautic space authority) has prescribed clothing of special characteristic for the outer space shuttle traveler to protect the space travelers for the harmful environment in the outer space. For this protective clothing, cotton fabric has been considered as the best due to its comfort-ability, electrical resistivity, and skin sensitivity. 

For the manufacturing of such protective clothing chemically treated cotton fabrics are used. Two-ply fabrics are used for the clothing. The chemically treated cotton fabric plies are 153 grams per square yard weft sateen, 244grams per square yard satin and 187 grams per square yard mercerized knitted single jersey fabrics. These fabrics are flame retardant finished with DAP or Urea and THPOH/NH3 in two steps. As a result, this kind of clothing shows better burning retardancy and flame retardancy property, which is approved by NASA (National aeronautic space authority).

Blanket made for the outer space traveler is made of two-ply fabric made from glass fiber and in between two-ply fabric, fibrous silica is used. Beside those, as heat-resistant clothing, needle felt Nomex fiber; graphite fiber and ceramic fiber is woven fabric, silicon rubber coated fabrics are also used.

At the time of launching the space shuttle, to dissipate the surface temperature of the space shuttle, water-filled bag made of ripstop nylon fabric is used on its surface. These kinds of water bag are manufactured by the Makrum Company. A special type of protective textiles or clothing has been made for the outer space shuttle traveler. The clothing is made of tubular woven fabric, woven in X-2 Draper shuttle loom with continuous polyester filament, then coated and molded to the required design and shape of the clothing.

Materials Used in Space Shuttle Protective Clothing:

Different types of materials used in space shuttle protective clothing are listed in the below:

1. Spandex
2. Urethane-coated nylon,
3. Nylon tricot,
4. Mylar,
5. Nomex,
6. Gortex,
7. Dacron,
8. Kevlar (material in bullet-proof vests),
9. Neoprene-coated nylon.

Advantages of Space Shuttle Protective Clothing:

Key advantages of space shuttle protective clothing are presented in the following:

1. Space suits have multiple layers of durable fabrics such as Dacron or Kevlar to protect the astronauts from shock with micrometeoroids.
2. Most of the space suits provide a pure oxygen atmosphere for breathing.
3. To keep the fluids in the body, the space suit provides air pressure.
4. To remove carbon dioxide space suits use lithium hydroxide canisters.
5. To help the astronauts bend their hands, arms, legs, knees, and ankles space suits are equipped with special joints or tapers in the fabric.

7. Protective Clothing for Racing Drivers:

The special type of clothing is needed for the racing drivers. The blend of glass fiber and wool fiber are used to spin the yarn and the yarn is used to weave the fabric of special construction and then the fabric is used for making the clothing.

To spin the yarn beta-glass fiber is blended with wool fibers. Then the blended yarn and pure woolen yarn is twisted together to produce the plied yarn. During weaving, one blended ply yarn and one woolen yarn is arranged alternately in both warp and weft direction to produce 2/2 twill fabric.

Racing suits and apparel made of Nomex fiber. This type of clothing or apparel helps to play a central role in providing the valuable seconds racing professionals needed to escape fires which result from both pit accidents and on-track collisions. It should be noted here that, this protection is long-lasting, whether it is found in protective suits, socks, underwear, and gloves. The exceptional flame-resistance provided by Nomex fiber cannot be worn away or washed out.

The last thing racing professionals want to think about the effectiveness of their flame-resistant protection when they are speeding around the track at 200 MPH. They just want to know that it will keep them safe from all the harms in case an accident happens. That is why 95% of racers around the world wear suits and apparel which is made by Nomex.

8. Chemical Resistant Clothing:

People working in the chemicals manufacturing industries and chemicals using industries should be protected from the harmful effect of chemicals. Chemicals may be in liquid form or powder form or gaseous form. So, depending on form of chemical materials, protective clothing is to be made and used. Chemicals protective clothing should be such that the liquid chemicals cannot pass through the clothing and cannot come in contact to skin, gaseous and powder type chemicals cannot enter into the body by respiration.
The main purpose of chemical protective textiles and equipment is to escutcheon or isolate individuals from the biological, physical and chemical hazards that may be encountered during hazardous materials operations. It is not always apparent when exposure occurs during chemical operations. This type of protective textiles or protective clothing is mainly used to prevent exposure during hazardous activities. These hazards can be grouped into categories such as thermal, chemical, nuclear, radiation (X-rays, UV) and biological hazards.

Guidelines for the Selection of Chemical Protective Clothing:

Depending on the form of chemicals, the suitable protective clothing is discussed in the below:

1. Liquid Chemicals Protective Clothing:

People of the liquid chemicals manufacturing and using industries needs to handle liquid chemicals like acid, liquid dyes, hydrogen per oxide etc. chemicals manually. If these liquid chemicals come in contact to skin then causes damage on the skin and in most cases these liquid chemicals come in contact to skin through the open areas of the clothing.

Very compactly woven woolen fabric made clothing can protect the human body from liquid chemicals like hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, sulphuric acid; petroleum etc. Fabric made from wool and polypropylene blended fibers can also protect human body from liquid chemicals. Polyester cotton @67/33 ratio blended fabric finished with 50% organ silicon emulsion, is considered as good acid resistant clothing. Fastness to washing and dry cleaning of these types of protective clothing is good and also safe for health.

Clothing for the workers of the petroleum product manufacturing and petroleum tank cleaners should be petroleum resistant. For this type work, clothing may be made from rubber coated cotton fabric, rubber coated viscose fabric, and polyurethane coated water resistant cotton, polyester and nylon-6 fabric. All the mentioned fabrics are woven and anti static finished. These fabrics works well as petroleum resistant clothing up to 30°C and at more than 30°C it should not be used for more than 30 minutes.

2. Powder Type Chemicals Protective Clothing:

In the industries where powder type of drug dust or powder type chemicals are stored or handle or weighted or mixed, physical damage by those powder type chemicals should be considered very carefully. Very fine powder type dust can easily mix with air and can enter inside the body through respiration and contributes to serious health hazards. Under those situations, musk may be used for temporary protection but in cannot be used for longer period.

For longer period use, ventilated visor or air stream helmet works well because there is no negative pressure as in the case of musk, and more over clean air flows inside the helmet. Disposable protective clothing can be used for the people of the medicine manufacturing industries, through which harmful cisplatin, etoposide, mitomycin, cyclophosphamide, carmustin, theotepa etc. cannot pass through the clothing into inside the body. Saranex-laminated Tyvek and polyethylene coated Tyvek fabric works very well as protective clothing but air cannot pass easily through this type of clothing. Hence, it is not comfortable for longer period of time.

3. Poisonous Gas Protective Clothing:

To save human body and life from poisonous gas, fully encapsulated suit can be used. During manufacturing of this type of clothing care should be taken so that gas cannot enter enough through the seam and zipper areas. Encapsulated suit made from saranex-laminated Tyvek fabric in gaseous situation works very well as poisonous gas protective clothing.

These types of protective clothing are very light, hence suitable for use, but need to be disposed of after one time use. A piece butyl-rubber suit is also suitable for this type of use but the clothing is costly. To work inside the fire burned house or car, head hood made from activated charcoal fabric is also suitable for protection against poisonous gas.

Conclusion

These are the Different Types of Protective Clothing Against All Hazards, which is highly important and considered personal protective equipment (PPE). and another type is missing here: Disposable Medical Mask.