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Article

Assessing the Impact of Pre-Soaking to Enhance Laundering Efficacy of Firefighter Turnout Gear

by
Md Tanjim Hossain
and
R. Bryan Ormond
*
Textile Protection and Comfort Center (TPACC), Wilson College of Textiles, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27606, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Toxics 2024, 12(8), 544; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics12080544 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 2 July 2024 / Revised: 19 July 2024 / Accepted: 25 July 2024 / Published: 27 July 2024
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Firefighters’ Occupational Exposures and Health Risks)

Abstract

Firefighters are exposed to hazardous chemicals at fire scenes, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) among many others, which pose significant health risks. Current laundering practices are ineffective at removing persistent contaminants from turnout gear, necessitating further research to optimize cleaning methods. This study explores the impact of presoaking prior to the laundering process and the factors that can affect its effectiveness, including the presoaking duration and detergent concentration, in PAH removal when laundering. For this, contaminated fabric swatches were subjected to various presoaking durations (1, 3, and 12 h) and detergent concentrations (99:1 and 90:10 water-to-detergent ratios) before undergoing bench-scale washing. The cleaning efficacy was assessed for 16 PAH compounds, including both low-molecular-weight (LMW) PAHs and high-molecular-weight (HMW) PAHs. Moreover, the removal mechanisms of PAHs from turnout gear were fundamentally explained using partition coefficients and standard affinities with different parameters during washing. The results demonstrate that 3 h and 12 h of presoaking lead to 2.8 and 4.3 times greater HMW PAH removal, respectively. After 12 h of presoaking in a 90:10 water-to-detergent ratio, 97% of the LMW PAHs and 78% of the HMW PAHs were removed, compared to only an 11% removal of the HMW PAHs with a 99:1 ratio. Additionally, direct washing with a 90:10 ratio achieved comparable efficacy to that of presoaking with the same water-to-detergent ratio, indicating the crucial role of detergent concentration during laundering. These findings offer valuable insights for optimizing firefighter safety practices, emphasizing the role of presoaking and the appropriate methods to perform presoaking to mitigate firefighters’ occupational exposure risks to toxic substances and ensure gear reliability.
Keywords: firefighters; turnout gear; PAHs; PAH desorption; presoaking; cleaning efficacy firefighters; turnout gear; PAHs; PAH desorption; presoaking; cleaning efficacy

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Hossain, M.T.; Ormond, R.B. Assessing the Impact of Pre-Soaking to Enhance Laundering Efficacy of Firefighter Turnout Gear. Toxics 2024, 12, 544. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics12080544

AMA Style

Hossain MT, Ormond RB. Assessing the Impact of Pre-Soaking to Enhance Laundering Efficacy of Firefighter Turnout Gear. Toxics. 2024; 12(8):544. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics12080544

Chicago/Turabian Style

Hossain, Md Tanjim, and R. Bryan Ormond. 2024. "Assessing the Impact of Pre-Soaking to Enhance Laundering Efficacy of Firefighter Turnout Gear" Toxics 12, no. 8: 544. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics12080544

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