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A gas mask is an item of personal protective equipment used to protect the wearer from inhaling airborne pollutants and toxic gases. The mask forms a sealed cover over the nose and mouth, but may also cover the eyes and other vulnerable soft tissues of the face. Most gas masks are also respirators, though the word gas mask is often used to refer to military equipment, the scope used in this article. The gas mask only protects the user from digesting, inhaling, and contact through the eyes. Most combined gas mask filters will last around 8 hours in a biological or chemical situation. Filters against specific chemical agents can last up to 20 hours.
Chemical warfare (CW) involves using the toxic properties of chemical substances as weapons. This type of warfare is distinct from nuclear warfare, biological warfare and radiological warfare, which together make up CBRN, the military acronym for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear, all of which are considered "weapons of mass destruction" (WMDs), a term that contrasts with conventional weapons.
The use of toxic chemicals as weapons dates back thousands of years, but the first large-scale use of chemical weapons was during World War I. They were primarily used to demoralize, injure, and kill entrenched defenders, against whom the indiscriminate and generally very slow-moving or static nature of gas clouds would be most effective. The types of weapons employed ranged from disabling chemicals, such as tear gas, to lethal agents like phosgene, chlorine, and mustard gas. This chemical warfare was a major component of the first global war and first total war of the 20th century. The killing capacity of gas was limited, with about 90,000 fatalities from a total of 1.3 million casualties caused by gas attacks. Gas was unlike most other weapons of the period because it was possible to develop countermeasures, such as gas masks. In the later stages of the war, as the use of gas increased, its overall effectiveness diminished. The widespread use of these agents of chemical warfare, and wartime advances in the composition of high explosives, gave rise to an occasionally expressed view of World War I as "the chemist's war" and also the era where weapons of mass destruction were created.
A respirator is a device designed to protect the wearer from inhaling hazardous atmospheres including fumes, vapours, gases and particulate matter such as dusts and airborne pathogens such as viruses. There are two main categories of respirators: the air-purifying respirator, in which respirable air is obtained by filtering a contaminated atmosphere, and the air-supplied respirator, in which an alternate supply of breathable air is delivered. Within each category, different techniques are employed to reduce or eliminate noxious airborne contaminants.
Hopcalite is the trade name for a number of mixtures that mainly consist of oxides of copper and manganese, which are used as catalysts for the conversion of carbon monoxide to carbon dioxide when exposed to the oxygen in the air at room temperature.
The M40 field protective mask was one of various protective masks used by the United States Armed Forces and its allies to protect from field concentrations of chemical and biological agents, along with radiological fallout particles. It is not effective in an oxygen deficient environment or against ammonia.
MOPP is protective gear used by U.S. military personnel in a toxic environment, e.g., during a chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear (CBRN) strike:
The Service Respirator No. 6 (S6), also known as Respirator NBC S6 No. 1 Mark 1 was a protective gas mask issued to the British Armed Forces. It was developed in the 1950s and issued for general service from 1966 to 1986, when it was replaced by the S10. Currently, the S6 is not used by the British military.
The M17 Protective Mask is a series of gas masks that were designed and produced in 1959 to provide protection from all types of known chemical and biological agents present. The M-17 was issued to troops in the Vietnam War, and was standard issue for the U.S. Military until it was replaced by the M40 Field Protective Mask for the U.S. Army and USMC in the mid 1990s while the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy replaced it for the MCU-2/P Gas Mask in the mid-1980s.
The GP-5 gas mask kit is a Soviet-made gas mask kit, which contains a single-filter ShM-62 or Shm-62U gas mask. It was issued to the Soviet population starting in 1962. Production of the kit ended in 1990. The number of GP-5 kits produced was three times more than the population of the Soviet Union. The GP-5 kit was originally made to protect the wearer from radioactive fallout during the Cold War and was distributed to most fallout shelters. They were tested in Poland to determine if they have NBC protective capabilities. It was concluded that the mask would last in an NBC situation for 24 hours.
The M-61 is a Finnish gas mask manufactured by Nokia since the 1960s up to the 1980s. It was the standard issue gas mask for the Finnish Defense Forces, but was replaced by the updated M-95 in the 1990s. It is a side loading mask It uses 60 millimeter threads, but adapters are available to convert it to 40 millimeter threads.
An orinasal mask, oro-nasal mask or oral-nasal mask is a breathing mask that covers the mouth and the nose only. It may be a complete independent item, as an oxygen mask, or on some anaesthetic apparatuses, or it may be fitted as a component inside a fullface mask on underwater breathing apparatus, a gas mask or an industrial respirator to reduce the amount of dead space. It may be designed for its lower edge to seal on the front of the lower jaw or to go under the chin.
The M50 series protective mask, officially known as the Joint Service General Purpose Mask, is a lightweight, protective mask system consisting of the mask, a mask carrier, and additional accessories. It was adopted by the U.S. military in 2006 and is manufactured by Avon Rubber, the rubber-producing department of Avon Protection. There are two variants, the M50, for ground and shipboard use, and the M51, for ground vehicle use.
The PMK gas mask represents a family of gas masks used by the Soviet Armed Forces, and later by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. It can be distinguished from its civilian counterpart, the GP-7, by its rounded triangular lenses, versus the GP-7's circular lenses.
The FM12 CBRN Respirator is a military gas mask produced by Avon Rubber.
The GP-4u gas mask was one of the most widely produced gas masks in the USSR.
The small box respirator was the initial compact version of the recent gas mask. In late 1916, the respirator was introduced by the British with the purpose to provide reliable protection against chlorine and phosgene gas. The respirator offered a first line of defense against the gas. A later and more toxic gas, mustard gas, was created by Germans and was a vesicant that burnt the skin of individuals that were exposed to it. Death rates were high with exposure to both the mixed phosgene chlorine and mustard gas, however with soldiers having readily available access to the small box respirator, death rates had lowered significantly. Light and reasonably fitting, the respirator was a key piece of equipment to readily protect the respiratory health of soldiers on the battlefield.
Elastomeric respirators, also called reusable air-purifying respirators, seal to the face with elastomeric material, which may be a natural or synthetic rubber. They are generally reusable. Full-face versions of elastomeric respirators seal better and protect the eyes.
FFP standards refer to the filtering half mask classification by EN 149, a European standard of testing and marking requirements for filtering half masks. FFP standard masks cover the nose, mouth and chin and may have inhalation and/or exhalation valves.
The GP-7 gas mask is a civilian gas mask that was produced by the Soviet Union during the Cold War era. The mask was designed to provide protection to civilians against nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) agents during the threat of the cold war. Its military counterpart, the PMK was intended to be used exclusively for military purposes as opposed to the GP-7 which was designed solely for civil defense.
References
- ↑ "Yugoslavian Military M1 Gas Mask". Forces Uniform and Kit. Retrieved 2020-07-10.
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