Personal protective equipment for dry ice blasting... Which should you choose?
When carrying out cryogenic cleaning, you very often need to work in hazardous areas in addition to the dangers associated with using a dry ice blasting system.
Anti-static personal protective equipment for dry ice blasting are there to protect you and ensure maximum comfort during your work.
The choice of these is therefore not trivial.
The dangers associated with using dry ice blasting equipment
A- Noise
Dry ice projection using a blaster generates noise that is very significant, averaging between 86 to 120 db : this is due to the use of compressed air as the projection vector and the type of nozzle used. In France, it is strongly recommended to wear hearing protection starting at 80 db, and beyond 85 db, wearing it is mandatory.
Remember, hearing loss is permanent...
You must therefore ensure you protect yourself properly based on the ambient noise level and that generated by the type of nozzle.
You will choose to wear:
- either "noise-blocking earplugs",
- or "noise-blocking headphones",
- or "earplugs & noise-blocking headphones"
La the latter solution being the most commonly used by many service providers: this will allow you to preserve your hearing health.
B- Cold
The temperature of dry ice is -78.5°C... sufficiently cold enough to cause frostbite ou cold burns.
La hand protection is therefore essential during dry ice blasting work because of:
- the transfer of dry ice: from the container to your blaster hopper,
- possible contact of the projection nozzle with your hand
For these reasons, you must ensure you are equipped with protective gloves ou cold-resistant gloves or thermal gloves, which will prevent direct contact with dryice or the nozzle frozen by intense cold.
Generally, these gloves have a soft non-slip surface and a cotton interior lining.
The protections vary by brand of 0 à -30°c : the model chosen by many service providers is one offering protection down to -5°c.
C- Projections
The use of compressed air as the projection vector for dry ice, with volumes ranging from 300 l/min to 12000 l/minand at pressures of 3 to 16 bar, can not only create a thrust pushing the worker backward, what is called the recoil effect, but can also cause the displacement forward or sideways of waste, dust, debris ou organic material, residues, ou products that has been loosened...
The elements mentioned above can bounce off the worker and present an injury risk:
- eye injuries,
- skin injuries...
Organic, synthetic, or chemical dust can become suspended in the air and present a risk for the respiratory tract.
This is why, to prevent accidents related to the use of compressed air for dry ice projection, the worker must protect themselves by using:
- protective glasses or a face shield,
- a protective clothing : work uniform or disposable coveralls,
- a respiratory protection mask suited to the type of contamination being treated
What are the other necessary personal protective equipment items?
In addition to the personal protective equipment mentioned above, the dry ice blasting worker must ensure they are equipped with a pair of safety shoes.
Depending on the type of work to be performed: work at height, in a nuclear power plant, in a petrochemical facility... the worker must also ensure they are equipped with personal protection specific to the type of work or to your requirements client's requirements:
- hard hat;
- high-visibility vest;
- beard cover;
- hairnet;
- harness;
- dosimeter;
- safety boots...
Using common sense and complying with regulations will help you avoid problems: industrial cleaning using dry ice blasting is a revolutionary cleaning technique ensuring perfect hygiene without any chemicals dangerous to health... Always ensure you are sufficiently protected with PPE appropriate equipment dry ice. It addresses environments where cleaning control takes priority over raw power, particularly when the goal is to preserve surface integrity while ensuring effective and reproducible cleaning. quality !
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Dry ice blasting: principle of action
Discover additional information on the mechanism of dry ice blasting: in video High Definition.
- Dry ice blasting explained
- Benefits of dry ice blasting
- Dry ice blasting applications in videos
- Questions and answers about dry ice blasting
- Cryogenic cleaning machines
- Industrial dry ice blasting
- Dry ice stripping
- Dry Ice
- Industrial and dry ice blasting training
- Personal protective equipment for dry ice blasting
- History of cryogenic cleaning
