Thermal Manikin Evaluation of Liquid Cooling Garments Intended for Use in Hazardous Waste Management

Thermal manikins are valuable tools for quantitatively evaluating the performance of protective clothing ensembles and microclimate cooling systems. The goal of this investigation was to examine the performance of Coretech personal cooling systems, designed to reduce the effects of physiological and environmental heat stress, using a sweating thermal manikin. A sweating manikin takes into account the effective physiological evaporative heat transfer. Three tubesuits containing different densities of tubing were evaluated on the thermal manikin in conjunction with body armor and two Chemical-Biological suits (SPM and JSLIST). The experiments were carried out in an environmental chamber set at a temperature of 35°C with a relative humidity of 30%. For the tubesuits, two flow rates were tested and the heat removal rates were obtained by measuring the amount of power required to maintain the manikin’s surface at a constant temperature of 35°C. The sweating rates were adjusted to maintain a fully wetted manikin surface at the above environmental conditions. For fluid flow rates ranging from approximately 250 to 750 ml/min, and inlet temperatures to the tubesuit ranging from 7 to 10°C, heat removal rates between 220 W to 284 W were measured, indicating the effectiveness of tubesuits at removing excessive body heat. This research was performed at the U.S. Army Soldier and Biological Chemical Command (SBCCOM) in Natick, Massachusetts. Disclaimer: The findings contained in this report are not to be construed as an official Department of the Army position unless so designated by other authorized documents. Citation of trade names in this report does not constitute an official endorsement or approval of the use of such items by the U.S. Government.