Specialized ppe testing for electric arc hazards beyond heat exposure

Over the past several years, personal protective equipment (PPE) has been developed to protect workers from the intense radiant heat energy of an electric arc flash event. Arc flash suits including hoods and hood shield windows are offered with heat protection levels up to 100 cal/cm
²
. However, there is increasing concern regarding potential hazards other than heat exposure that are also part of an electric arc event, e.g. shrapnel, pressure waves and high sound levels. The NFPA 70E Technical Committee elected to limit its Hazard/Risk Category exposure levels to 40 cal/cm>sup>2 in the proposed 2004 edition until a better understanding of these additional arc flash hazards is achieved. This paper reports recent specialized testing results on hazards involving shrapnel, pressure waves and excessive noise levels. The effectiveness of current arc flash PPE against these additional arc flash hazards and the need for an alternate approach for “rating” these additional hazards is discussed.