Summary

The handbook provides ready information on the fire and chemical reactivity of commonly used chemicals. Its purpose is to provide basic information important to the safe handling of chemicals and to help provide guidance in responding to a hazardous materials incident, in particular, incidents involving reactive chemicals and materials posing fire and explosion hazards. The volume has been written for chemical handling specialists, first responders to hazardous materials incidents, and firefighters. The basic definition used for a hazard materials incident is any situation that may potentially lead to catastrophic fire or explosion, and or human exposed to a toxic chemical. This situation may result from a spill of a hazardous material, a leak from a storage vessel or shipping container, or the mixing of incompatible chemicals whereby a chemical reaction could occur resulting in the release of energy and generation of toxic and perhaps flammable by-products. The volume provides chemical specific information, providing the reader with rigorous information on the chemical of interest.This book is a compendium of chemical specific fire and chemical reactivity data and information. More than 1,000 chemicals have been researched and organized into a reference handbook for fire specialists, chemical handling specialists, and plant safety engineers. The specific information provided for chemicals includes the flammability characteristics, recommended fire extinguishing practices, fire extinguishing agents not to be used, behavior in fires, burning characteristics, chemical reactivity with regard to water and common materials, incompatible chemical mixtures, containment and neutralization methods for spills. This reference book has been designed as a data bank for the hazardous materials handling specialist and industrial safety managers dealing with large chemical inventories. It is intended to be used by fire and loss prevention specialists and as a basis for developing procedures for safe storing and handling of chemicals. The authors have included an extensive physical properties section on chemicals, with information most pertinent to fire response situations.