Evaluating the performance of surfactant and charcoal-based cleaning products to effectively remove PAHs from firefighter gear.

ABSTRACT: Firefighters regularly respond to fire scenes where a mixture of chemicals including volatile, semi-volatile, and nonvolatile compounds are present in smoke and soot. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are common contaminants at fire scenes that may be deposited on the gear and the individual firefighter. Laundering is a common approach for the decontamination of contaminated gear. Surfactants are widely used by firefighters during laundering to remove PAHs as they are generally non-toxic and biodegradable. The removal of PAHs depends on the surfactant types, chemistries, and concentrations. This study evaluated the effect of surfactant concentrations to remove persistent contaminants like PAHs from turnout gear. The cleaning performance of different types of surfactants was also eval

SUBMITTER: Hossain MT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10698686 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature