A PRELIMINARY COMPARISON OF THERMAL DECOMPOSITION PRODUCTS OF AIRCRAFT INTERIOR MATERIALS USING THE NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS SMOKE CHAMBER AND THE COMBUSTION TUBE FURNACE

Twelve aircraft interior materials were burned under standard flaming combustion conditions in the National Bureau of Standards (NBS) smoke chamber. Each material was also exposed to 600 Celsius (C) in a combustion tube furnace under conditions of oxidative pyrolysis. The combustion products were collected in liquid-filled impingers, and the contents were analyzed for hydrogen cyanide, hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen chloride, hydrogen bromide, and formaldehyde by differential pulse polarography, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide by visible spectrophotometry, and hydrogen fluoride by ion-selective electrode. Carbon monoxide was measured directly by a nondispersive infrared analyzer. The yields of the nine gases are reported in terms of milligrams per gram of material. The toxic gas yields were obtained for each material in the NBS smoke chamber and were compared to the yields obtained in the combustion tube furnace. The yields were also compared to those obtained using colorimetric detector tubes in the NBS smoke chamber. The extent of the correlation of the various procedures is reported. The relative yields of HCl, HCN, and H2S were found to be somewhat independent of the exposure conditions. The relative yields of the oxidized gases, CO, HCHO, NO2, and SO2, are much more dependent on the exposure conditions. (Author)

• Corporate Authors:

  National Aviation Facilities Experimental Center

  Federal Aviation Administration
  Atlantic City, NJ  United States  08405
• Authors:
  • SPEITEL, L C
  • Feher, R E
  • Spurgeon, J C
• Publication Date: 1978-3

Media Info

• Pagination: 34 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Aircraft; Aircraft cabins; Combustion; Epoxy resins; Fabrics; Fiberglass; Fires; Gas analysis; Plastics; Polyamide resins; Pyrolysis; Seats; Textiles; Toxicity
• Uncontrolled Terms: Carpets; Interior
• Old TRIS Terms: Aircraft fires; Airplane panels; Combustion products; Woolen textiles
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00176272
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: FAA-RD-77-123 Final Rpt., FAA-NA-77-22
• Files: NTIS, TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Aug 19 1978 12:00AM