Government and Defence

Decontamination

Decontamination procedures following accidental spills, or deliberate releases of toxic substances, will initially focus on identification and containment, followed by clean-up and assessment.

In the case of accidental spillage, it should be a straightforward matter to identify the materials to be dealt with. Any potentially hazardous cargo will be labelled according to legal requirements to impart vital information to emergency response teams.

In many places this will follow the UN’s Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals, GHS, which provides a series of hazard pictograms consisting of a red diamond enclosing a black and white graphic. These provide clear language-independent information about whether the contents may be explosive, flammable, oxidising, corrosive, toxic, or irritant.

In North America the US National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) operates the 704 code system , known as the ‘fire diamond’ or ‘hazard diamond’, to provide similar information. NFPA 704 uses a numerical assessment of risk using four coloured sub-diamonds which make up the familiar diamond pattern. A number for flammability is given in the upper red section, health hazard in the left-hand blue part, instability or reactivity in the right-hand yellow diamond, and any special notices such as oxidiser or asphyxiant in the lower white.

For rapid determination of the extent of a spill and accurate measurement of VOC concentrations, handheld portable instruments in the Tiger VOC detector range are ideal. These can be operated easily with a single hand, even when cocooned within a hazmat suit, and provide almost instant measurement of a vast range of volatile organic compounds from 0.001 to 20,000 parts per million (one part per billion to 20 parts per thousand).

These battery-powered instruments are robust and safe to use in explosive environments, and can quickly assist in the determination of a safe perimeter. Measurements are logged to provide vital information on clean-up progress and for later post-incident analysis.

The safety of personnel will be enhanced with the Cub personal VOC detector, a lightweight device which attaches to protection clothing to provide an individual count of exposure.

Occupational Hygiene

For situations where a rapid response is required and meaningful answers are needed fast, portable hand held VOC detectors are a powerful tool. Capable of being deployed in any location at short notice, they can provide an accurate assessment of concentrations of volatile organic compounds including unknown or uncertain hydrocarbon compounds and mixtures.

These portable instruments are often deployed along with individual wearable VOC detectors, providing a level personal protective equipment (PPE) to those on the ground. Together these ION Science PID instruments provide a powerful armoury to keep personnel operating effectively and productively in even the most challenging of circumstances.