ISRP 2002 abstract

Presenter/author Title Abstract

Steenweg, Leo

TNO Prins Maurits Laboratory, Chemical and Biological Protection, Physical Protection

Evaluation of the FM12 Mask with Respect to the Protection Factors To establish whether the FM12-mask that is used by the Dutch Army meets the requirements with respect to the level of protection, TNO-PML measured the protection factors of about 260 soldiers. Repeat tests were conducted after three months. It was evaluated as well whether the soldiers were equipped with the right mask size and whether the donning of the mask was performed according to the user instructions.

It was found that a significant number of the soldiers were equipped with the wrong mask size. A correlation has been found between mask size and protection factors.

It was found that the level of protection depends on the experience of the wearer of the mask. After proper instruction, it was found that there was a significant reduction in the number of wearers with an insufficient level of protection.