rmoore
02-05-1999, 10:11 AM
A Posting from Ron Moore, Forum Moderator
Rescue personnel who arrive at a crash immediately after airbag deployment may see or smell what appears to be smoke along with a powder inside the vehicle.
The smoke is produced by the combustion of gas-producing chemicals, sodium azide as an example, within the inflator units.
Stored gas-type airbag systems ( introduced on the Volvo 1999 vehicles) do not use chemicals to generate the gases but rather store argon and helium gas under pressure (1,390psi) in canisters at each airbag unit.
The powder you may see or feel if you touch a deployed airbag is usually corn starch or talcum powder. This is used as a lubricant to ensure smooth deployment of the airbag by preventing it from sticking together while it
is stored within the unit.
With chemical generator-type units, also mixed with the residual powder may be a small amount of sodium hydroxide, a byproduct of the combustion process of sodium azide gas generant that takes place inside the inflator unit.
This chemical is slightly alkali and may cause skin and eye irritation to you or your patient.
It normally reacts quickly with the moisture in air in the passenger compartment to form sodium carbonate, or baking soda; a much less irritating compound.
In high humidity situations, it is probable that the production of the baking soda compound will have taken place before the arrival of law enforcement, EMS or fire personnel.
In low relative humidity situations however, minute quantities of sodium hydroxide vapors may still be present within a closed passenger compartment.
Ventilation of this space can be beneficial to patients and emergency personnel working within this area.
How about PPV for vehicles?
Rescue personnel who arrive at a crash immediately after airbag deployment may see or smell what appears to be smoke along with a powder inside the vehicle.
The smoke is produced by the combustion of gas-producing chemicals, sodium azide as an example, within the inflator units.
Stored gas-type airbag systems ( introduced on the Volvo 1999 vehicles) do not use chemicals to generate the gases but rather store argon and helium gas under pressure (1,390psi) in canisters at each airbag unit.
The powder you may see or feel if you touch a deployed airbag is usually corn starch or talcum powder. This is used as a lubricant to ensure smooth deployment of the airbag by preventing it from sticking together while it
is stored within the unit.
With chemical generator-type units, also mixed with the residual powder may be a small amount of sodium hydroxide, a byproduct of the combustion process of sodium azide gas generant that takes place inside the inflator unit.
This chemical is slightly alkali and may cause skin and eye irritation to you or your patient.
It normally reacts quickly with the moisture in air in the passenger compartment to form sodium carbonate, or baking soda; a much less irritating compound.
In high humidity situations, it is probable that the production of the baking soda compound will have taken place before the arrival of law enforcement, EMS or fire personnel.
In low relative humidity situations however, minute quantities of sodium hydroxide vapors may still be present within a closed passenger compartment.
Ventilation of this space can be beneficial to patients and emergency personnel working within this area.
How about PPV for vehicles?