Shrinkage of fire-fighting suit during flash fire exposure

The shrinkage of fire-fighting suit in the flame may affect its thermal protective performance and constrain body's movement. By using an instrumented mannequin,flame-test for complete garments is applied to simulate the fire situation. Seals marked on the garment are used to measure the shrinkage distribution of the garments during flash fire exposure. The reasons for the shrinkage and its factors are studied. The relationship between shrinkage and the burn injury of manikin skin is preliminarily analyzed. Results show that the sleeves,trousers and the back of the clothing shrink significantly. The variation of the shrinkage results from the heat flux,air gap and other factors. The shrinkage extent is influenced by wearing posture,fire duration,construction size,and fabric areal density. As a whole, burn injury will be more serious where the shrink is more significant.