Improving the heat, fire, and melt resistance of elastomeric seals on military gas masks

Improvised Explosive Devices (IED's) have wreaked havoc amongst American and Coalition troops. They have been the number one killer of Coalition forces. Many times the impact knock out fuel tanks which then catch on fire, causing life threatening burn injuries. As a counter, the military unveiled new fire/melt resistant clothing. In the case of a chemically contaminated environment, the soldier will have to rely on a gas mask with an elastomeric seal that is not resistant to fire or melting. If a soldier is traveling in a vehicle with his or her gas mask on and gets hit by an IED, facial and eye bum injuries are very possible. New material must be found that can help prevent these injuries, particularly concerning the seal. The goal is to find the best combination of a suitable elastomer, curing agent, and filler that can give the soldier precious time to escape a burning vehicle. Various types of materials are discussed concerning thermal, other physical properties, cost, and relevant patents.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2009

Author dc:creator

• Hong, Charles S., M. Eng. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• David Roylance.

• Materials Science and Engineering.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/54549

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/54549