Sealed Seam Sack Suits

Category: Worker Health & Safety > Personal Protective Equipment > Heat & Cold Protection
Reference # : OST No 1954 , DOE/EM-0377 Model No : SESS

The sealed-seam sack suits are personal protective clothing made from synthetic fabrics. Four different brands (six types) of disposable suits and one brand of reusable cotton suit were demonstrated and assessed. All disposable suits were water-resistant and vapor-permeable, except for one suit that was water-resistant and vapor-impermeable. The suits used for this demonstration are described as follows: C Comfort Guard-150 - disposable, yellow, non-woven material.C Frham KoolSuit - disposable, yellow, non-woven, breathable laminate C Kappler NuFab - disposable, yellow, non-woven material with an internal membrane C Kappler Pro/Shield 1 and 2 - disposable, white, non-woven laminate point-bonded material C Kappler Tyvek - disposable, polyethylene-coated Tyvek (impermeable) material. C Copiah Creek suit (baseline) - washable, white, cotton material. Some of the material descriptions are based on examinations by the C Reactor Project and LANL because the actual material construction is proprietary. Figures 1 and 2 show the Kappler Pro/Shield 1 and Comfort Guard 150 suits. Dimensions of Tech Model (LxWxH): Weight of Tech Model (lb):

Benefits

Disposable suits reduce the chance of skin contamination due to garment reuse. (Radiation monitoring after laundry is not 100% successful, and body moisture break-through is more easily detected using disposable suits--particularly the ProShield I.) The cost of the disposable suits was estimated to be less than the cost for the baseline suit. Less handling (e.g., collection, transportation, laundry, drying, radiation monitoring, and delivery) of the contaminated suits is required when using disposable suits. Disposable suits reduce account management (i.e., the cost of keeping a laundry subcontract).

Limitations

No limitations or needs for further development of the sealed-seam sack suits were identified.

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Confort Guard 150

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