Thermal protection

This chapter discusses the fire and heat protection and the means of conferring these features into textile products and assemblies and other factors such as comfort, ballistic resistance, chemical, and biological agency resistance will only be commented on if particularly relevant to a particular thermal protective solution or system. The chapter will focus on factors that assist in understanding the nature of the thermal hazards as they apply to textiles and the means of addressing them. Thermal protection relates to the ability of textiles to resist conductive, convective, radiant thermal energy or a combination of two or more. Levels of thermal resistance may be simply defined with respect to maximum temperature of exposure criteria, although time of exposure is a significant parameter as well. Within the area of flammability of all so-called conventional fibers, wool has the highest inherent non-flammability and so is particularly attractive for protective textile end-uses such as uniforms, coveralls, transport seatings, and domestic and contract furnishings, where heavier fabrics may be used and the aesthetic character of wool may be marketed