Firefighting: Challenges of Smart PPE

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2022-08

Authors

Gilda Santos (Author) Other; Rtia Marques (Author) Other; João Ribeiro (Author) Other; Adriana Moreira (Author) Other; Patrícia Fernandes (Author) Other; Silva, Margarida (Author) FEUP; Fonseca, A. (Author) FEUP; Miranda, JM (Author) FEUP; Campos, JBLM (Author) FEUP; Soraia Neves (Author) FEUP

Journal

Title: Forests

Serial No. Article 562 Vol. 13 No. 4

Pages: 1319-1319

ISSN: 1999-4907

Publisher: MDPI

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 0 Citations

Scopus

Associated Projects

DIF-Jacket - Desenvolvimento de um casaco de bombeiro inovador

ALiCE - ALiCE - Laboratório Associado em Engenharia Química

CEFT - Financiamento Plurianual 2020-2023 da Unidade de I&D CEFT - Centro de Estudos de Fenómenos de Transporte

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00X-2PE

DOI: 10.3390/f13081319

Abstract (EN): The continuous research and development regarding firefighters' personal protective equipment (PPE) has led to significant improvements in recent decades. Despite the evolution of firefighters' PPE, every year an undesirable number of firefighters are seriously burned during firefighting operations, with some of them eventually losing their lives. The protection given by firefighters' PPE can be further increased with the incorporation of smart textiles in the personal protective equipment, namely, wearable electronics (i.e., integrated sensors to monitor diverse parameters: heart rate, oxygen saturation, carbon dioxide detector, and setting real-time communication with a command post) and advanced materials such as phase change materials (PCMs). The evolution of firefighters' PPE has been followed by an evolution and update in the international and national standards that specify performance requirements for firefighters' protective clothing for structural and wildland firefighting as well as technical rescue. This study will focus on the analysis of firefighters protective clothing evolution regarding the use and integration of advanced smart materials, namely, phase change materials, taking into consideration the evolution and requirements of international and European standards as well as national legislation for firefighters' protective clothing.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 9