Comparative Analysis of the Liquid CO2 Washing with Conventional Wash on Firefighters’ Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Abstract

Firefighters are exposed to several potentially carcinogenic fireground contaminants. The current NFPA 1851 washing procedures are less effective in cleaning due to the limited intensity of the washing conditions that are used. The 2020 edition of NFPA 1851 has added limited specialized cleaning for higher efficacy. The liquid carbon dioxide (CO2) laundering technique has gained popularity in recent years due to its availability to remove contaminants and its eco-friendliness. The primary aim of this study is to address the firefighter questions regarding the efficacy of cleaning with liquid CO2 and to compare it with the conventional washing technique. The unused turnout jackets were contaminated with a mixture of fireground contaminants. These turnout jackets were cleaned with conventional NFPA 1851-appoved aqueous washing and a commercially available liquid CO2 method. Post-cleaning samples were analyzed for contamination using pressurized solvent extraction and GC-MS. The liquid CO2 technique demonstrated considerable improvement in washing efficiency compared to the conventional washing.