Citation

Caldwell DJ, Alarie Y. J. Fire Sci. 1991; 9(6): 470-518.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1991, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Mice were exposed for 30 minutes to smoke from burning polymers under flaming conditions using the UPitt II apparatus for evaluation of flaming combustion/toxicity of smoke. The burning conditions were selected to enable comparison to Douglas fir data previously presented. The principal toxicant was found to be CO for polymethyl methacrylate and polycarbonate. However, other toxicants, HCN and HCl, contributed to the observed lethality of smoke from rigid polyurethane foam and polyvinyl chloride respectively. The LC50 smoke concentration (in mg/L obtained from the mass loss rate and airflow rate) (SCLC50), survivable exposure concentration (SEC) and cumulative hazard (SIGMA-h) were calculated for these synthetic polymers to permit comparisons between these polymers and Douglas fir. As found with Douglas fir, the SIGMA-h for exposure to smoke from a burning polymer varied with the burning conditions. However, the smoke concentration over the range of burning conditions evaluated, was a good predictor of lethality for each polymer tested. A Potential Smoke Hazard (PSH) index was developed by combining material performance characteristics with toxic potency, time to death, and rate of generation of toxicants by the burning polymer. The results indicate that polycarbonate has the lowest PSH, followed by Douglas fir, rigid polyurethane foam, polyvinyl chloride, and polymethyl methacrylate, The PSH index can be modified to use incapacitation data instead of lethality data. Also, it can incorporate the effect of smoke production on visibility.