Industrial Fire and Safety

Introduction : Underground structures are characterised by the fact that their outer walls are tightly joined to the soil. Those being deeper than one floor beneath the ground normally have neither celler windows nor outside of the use of the vertical passages such as stairways and elevators.  The inaccessibility of underground structures due to smoke generation in the event of fire results in some unique problems and difficulties. Primary among these are: a) Difficulty in venting smoke, heat and toxic products of combustion.  b) Difficulty in fire fighting and evacuating occupants.  c) Difficulty in making any appraisal of the fire conditions or about whereabouts of the fire itself.  d) Difficulty in communication between personnel below ground and also between persons on the surface and below ground.  e) Difficulty in effectively applying extinguishing media.  f) Unusual congestion and restriction of movement in the interior of the underground...

Fire smoke The composition of them Gaseous mixture "fire smoke" varies according to the fuel and conditions. A well-oxygenated, outdoor wood fire nay produce a very light smoke with relatively few chemicals. Although there are particulates in wood smoke capable of causing low-level inflammation, this type of exposure rarely requires medical attention. Toxic fire smoke, however, is the result of a fire when the fuel load is more complex (e.g plastics, artificial facbrics) or the oxygen supply us limited. Structure fires are usually the primary concern when we consider smoke inhalation, but toxic fire smoke is also created at trash bin/dumpster and automobile fires. Wildfire smoke can also be toxic if the burning area was recently sprayed with chemicals.  Chemicals are released from incomplete combustion and from the off-gassing of glues used in the manufacturing process.  Also contained within fire smoke are small Inhalable particles known as fines and ultrafine. T...

Air sampling : - Basic need of air quality sampling and work environment monitoring and analysis is to find the level of pollution and to work out strategy to reduce it. Need of sampling and monitoring is statutorily suggested by Form no. 37,Rule 12B of the Gujarat Factories Rules. The format calls for identification of airborne contaminants, sampling instruments and methods, number of samples and comparison of measured value with the TWA concentration in 2nd schedule of the Factories Act to assess the working environment also the number of workers exposed to that. Correct record of such workplace monitoring is essential for good health and good housekeeping.  Need of sampling and monitoring is also inferred from the types, sources and hazards of air pollutants. Monitoring is more than air sampling or medical examination of a worker. It includes a series of actions to assess the protection necessary.  CLICK HERE👉 Environmental air sampling Purpose and types of Air...

Ionising and non-ionising Radiation: Electromagnetic radiation consists of varying electric and magnetic fields, operating at right angles to each other. It has both particulate and wavelike aspects. Long waves have low energy, short-waves have high. The higher energy wavelengths (short-waves) are more penetrating i.e. more damaging. X-rays, gamma rays and cosmic rays have short wavelengths, 10"cm and less, and high frequency, 10'6 c/s and above and cause ionising radiation.  Others i.e. electric waves, radiowaves, micro waves, visible light, IR, UV and lasers have longer wavelength and less frequency and cause non-ionising radiation. Lasers are involved in visible light, IR and UV regions of the spectrum given below: CLICK HERE👉 Difference between ionising and non-ionising electromagnetic radiation . Ionising Radiation: Ionising radiation means electromagnetic or corpuscular radiation capable of producing ions directly in its passage through matter. It is not vis...

Categories of Airports:- All civil airports are placed within categories ranging from category 1,the lowest, to category 10,the highest. Categories are fundamentally determined by the size of the aircraft and scale of operations. The larger the aircraft and the greater the frequency of it's movements the higher the category of the aircraft correspondingly with the rise in airport category rescue and firefighting provision in increased.  Airports such as heath row and Manchester operate at the highest category, whilst South end and beginning hill are at a much lower level. Airport categories can Change, however as the scale of aircraft operation fluctuates. Brigades with airports on their ground should ensure they are familiar with the category of the airport the extent of operations and most importantly the scale of rescue and firefighting provision maintained. Maps of the airport and the immediate vicinity with topographical details such as emergency water supplies, hy...

Aircraft is a vehicle capable to take the flight and can fly in the sky to meet the designated purpose.  Parts of an Aircraft :- i)Body Construction.  ii)Aircraft Engine iii) Fuel and fuel tank.  iv) Powered and pressurized system.  v) Seating  vi) Aircraft Access and Egress.  CLICK HERE👉 Parts of an aircraft Materials of construction:- Aluminium Alloys: This is the most common of the metals used I'm aircraft construction. Their composition varies depending upon where they are used i.e. skin surfaces, formers, stringers, spars etc.  Aluminium alloys can be readily cut with axes, hacksaws or powered cutting tools. Aluminium alloys are good conductors, quickly transmitting heat and equally rapidly cooled by water spray or form.  Magnesium and it's Alloys : Magnesium alloys is light, strong metal that can be found in engine mounting brackets, crankcases in piston engines, compressor casings of turbined engines but...

Occupational Health: Occupational health is eventually a branch of preventive medicine which examines the relationship between work and health and effects of work on the health of the worker.  Occupational health includes all factors relating work and working conditions, methods and environment that may cause diseases, injuries and deviation from health including maladjustment to work. It implies not only health protection but also health promotion for improving the health and working capacity of the worker, viz. preventive measures against diseases, improvement of nutrition and general mental health.  Occupational health was defined by ILO/WHO committee in 1950 as,"Occupational health should aim at:the promotion and maintenance of the highest degree of physical, mental and social well-being of workers in all occupations, the prevention among workers from departure from health caused by their working conditions, the protection of workers in their employment from ri...

Types of Dusts and their Effects: Dust is a disperse system (aerosol) of solid small particles in air or gas whose size distribution is like a colloid. It originates from mechanical communication of coarser material. Mining, breaking, crushing, grinding, mixing, polishing and handling are the main dust generating processes.  Small particles of 0.1 to 5 u.m. size (respirable dust) can remain in the alveolar passages of which smaller particles (O.I r-lm) behave as colloids or smoke, deposit in lungs and other parts and cause health effect. Particles or larger size (>5 (im) are driven back by the clearance mechanism. Asbestos fibre of 3 (urn or less in diameter and upto 100 (in length can reach the alveoli, while the smallest fibres can reach upto pluera and pluera space.  2nd Schedule of the Factories Act prescribes TLV (permissible time-weighted average i.e. TWA concentration per 8 hours) of cotton, asbestos, coal, cement and silica dusts.  Types...

Air borne Contaminants.  When chemicals are disseminated in air and contaminate it, they are called air-borne contaminants. They are classified according to their physical state as under: A) Gases and Vapours: 1. Gases: Normally formless fluid which occupy the space of enclosure and which can be changed your the liquid or solid state only by the combined effect of increased pressure and temperature. Gases diffuse. The particle size varies from 0.0005 to 0.01 micron.  Examples are chlorine, ammonia, sulphur dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, hydrogen cyanide, carbon monoxide etc. Main pollutants are oxides of carbon, sulphur and nitrogen.  2.Vapours : The gaseous form of substance which are normally in the solid or liquid state and which can be changed to these states by either increasing the pressure or decreasing the temperature alone. Vapours diffuse. The particle size varies from 0.005 to 0.01 micron.  Examples are vapours of lead oxide, benzene, ...