This study was conducted to evaluate breakthrough characteristics of respirator cartridge using multi-organic vapors, including carbon tetrachloride, trichloroethylene, and toluene. The organic vapors were used as single phase, binary system, and ternary system. The results are summarized as follows.
1. Organic vapors studied were 1,000 ppm, 750 ppm, 500 ppm and 250 ppm in single phase. Carbon tetrachloride having the highest molecular weight showed the breakthrough first, and breakthrough sequency by organic vapor was dependent on its molecular weight. The 10% breakthrough times at 1,000 ppm of organic vapor were 97 minutes for carbon tetrachloride, 129 minutes for trichloroethylene and 135 minutes for toluene.
2. When concentrations of organic vapors were at levels of the Threshold Limit Values, the lives of the respirator cartridges were 122 hours in carbon tetrachloride, 18 hours in trichloroethylene and 28 hours in toluene.
3. In the binary system at a total concentration of 1,000 ppm with carbon tetrachloride and trichloroethylene, breakthrough times ranged from 104 minutes to 125 minutes, which were longer than 97 minutes in a single phase (1,000 ppm) for carbon tetrachloride, but shorter than breakthrough times for TCE and Toluene.
4. Breakthrough times in the binary system with carbon tetrachloride and toluene were 131∼132 minutes.
5. Breakthrough times in the ternary system with carbon tetrachloride, toluene, and trichloroethylene were 120±8 minutes, which were longer than 97 minutes in the single phase (1,000 ppm) for carbon tetrachloride, equal to 129 minutes for trichloroethylene, and shorter than 135 minutes for toluene. Those were almost similar to 124±9 minutes of breakthrough times in the binary systems.
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