Why Ordinary Work Clothes can not Meet the Needs of Arc Protection - YULONG SAFETY

Why Ordinary Work Clothes can not Meet the Needs of Arc Protection

arc protection clothing

Ordinary work clothes worn in the power industry, such as cotton and cotton blended fabrics, does not protect the general population from the threat of arcing. Instead, they expand injury.

Wear protective clothing made of ordinary materials will melt or burn when exposed to the heat generated by the arc explosion. These fabrics may still burn after the end of the arc accident, which is more serious than the damage caused by the arc itself. The larger the weight and thickness of the fabric, the more fuel it provides. The arc accident may end in a flash, but the ordinary work clothes may continue to burn. It takes only a few seconds to cause three degree burns. Clothing made of these fabrics will melt and adhere to the skin, which must be erased or removed by surgery. Wearing combustible clothing and exposure to arc explosions may increase the extent of burns. The survival of burns depends on many factors, including age of survivors and total burn area. In all age groups, the larger the total area of burns, the lower the chance of survival.

In addition, ordinary work clothes is not designed to fight against bursting. The power of an electric arc is enough to rip off clothing such as cotton and polyester cotton blended fabrics, exposing employees directly exposed to electric arc.

The extent of burns due to arc accidents varies with duration, current and arc length. At the same time, the degree of burn also varies with the distance between workers and arcs, the type and weight of clothing, and the number of layers of clothing.

arc protection clothing
The United States Occupational Safety and health administration standard stipulates that employers must ensure that employees are provided for clothing exposed to fire or arc hazards to meet the requirements of power generation, transmission and distribution.

The National Fire Protection Association standard NFPA 70E basically benefits all aspects of electrical safety in all industries and workshops. NFPA 70E recommends the use of arc protection and flame protection personal protective devices that meet the standard requirements.

The ASTM F1506 standard provides for the specification of resistance fabric materials used by electrical operators exposed to transient arcs and associated thermal hazards. The ASTM F1506 standard specifies specific indicators related to protection, including vertical combustion performance test and arc protection rating test. There is no requirement for explosion pressure, molten metal beach or gas emission.

The National Fire Protection Association of the United States has developed many lateral test methods and performance standards for testing and assessing the materials of flame retardant clothing and personal protective equipment. These devices are used to reduce the risk of burns to persons who may be exposed to arc hazards. The testing methods and standards include ASTM F1959, ASTM F1506 and NFPA 70E.

In 2005, the regulations for the management of whole equipment for the national Power Grid Corp electric Union (ITU) has been explicitly listed as a general protective equipment in Annex 2, and the requirements for the equipment of the general protection and safety of the substations and groups are put forward in Annex seven and Annex 8 respectively.