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December 2007–Number
two
December 18, 2007
THEY REFUSE TO ACKNOWLEDGE KNOWLEDGE
Modacrylic is a copolymer
fiber. A copolymer fiber is a made from combination of two chemicals,
both petrochemicals. They have a melt point between 375 F and 425
F. I am not making this up, all one has to do, is do the research
available on the wonderful internet. This is the basic material that
is being used to make flame retardant underwear for our military.
You recall that all soldiers going into battle zones were prohibited
from wearing the synthetic underwear they were issued due to the melting
of the synthetic material when an IED was encountered. According to
an article in the March 10 ,2007 issue of Stars and Stripes military
publication, I quote; “As part of that testing, the new uniforms
have been engulfed in flames at the same temperature of about 1500
degrees to mimic the initial flash from a roadside bomb (IED), officials
said.” The comment actually is about the uniform worn over the
underwear. It seems to me that the underwear being worn subjected
to 1500 degrees will melt.
One of the major suppliers for the modacrylic fabric;
Drifire located in the Chicago area publishes on their web site; “There
are no caustic agents or dangerous chemical compounds in modacrylic nor are
any added to our garments before, during or after the process of garment manufacture.” That
is a somewhat misleading statement; they to the best of my knowledge do not
manufacture the finished garments. They also have an American flag with the
caption “Drifire is made in America.” Again a misleading statement;
Drifire is an American company but the raw materials used to make the fabric
come from Asia or Europe. First of all about 1977 the Dupont Company terminated
the manufacture of Modacrylic fiber because they lost I believe 18 employees
to cancer. The materials that go into the manufacture of modacrylic are carcinogenic.
Two or three other chemical companies that also produced modacrylic fiber ended
their production shortly there after. All of the modacrylic used by Drifire
is made in either Japan or China. I agree the material that is used is cut
and sewn in the USA.
Every bit of this information which includes the off
gassing that occurs when it does burn is toxic is simply not acknowledged by
the powers to be who make the decisions about the clothing issued to our soldiers.
I am not alone in wondering why they refuse to acknowledge
knowledge.
Not accepting existing knowledge
is not new to those who are in the employee of the government working
for the military in the textile area. The wool viscose rayon material
has been in use for clothing worn by workers in steel or aluminum
manufacturing plants because of its fire retardant capability particularly
the fact that it will not melt from high heat. Electrical workers
wear it against their skin and are told not to wear any synthetic
underwear, and have been told this for years. This is not to say some
in the electrical field follow all of the recommendations, but that
is the reason they were told this in the first place, electrical fires
generate as much as 14,000 degrees of heat. This fabric has been around
for some years now; you would think that the existence of this knowledge
would be embraced by the government employees working for the military,
but no! They have to reinvent the wheel. When you present them with
all of the facts about your product and the false information about
the other products they create a testing program which can last for
what could be a lifetime especially if they want the product you know
will not perform. It’s called job security.
I remember 1968 when the continuous filament fiber “Polar
Guard” came on the market. It was shown to the army testing laboratory
at Natick, MA. The individual in charge jumped on it like a fly on you know
what. Since I had been doing experiments with laminating fiberfill and found
that this was the only fiberfill that would laminate successfully I showed
him. He noted the benefits and ordered materials for use in the manufacture
of mittens for the Alaskan command. They performed better than any other mitten
ever used in Alaska by the military. That was as far as it ever went. They
did use the Polar Guard quilted for insulation in field jacket liners and sleeping
bags. However, that ended in 1980 or so when they were shown a chopped staple
fiberfill that claimed to be as good only less expensive. It was only less
expensive, it was not then nor is it today or will it be tomorrow as good.
Things with respect to continuous filament changed in 1993 when I started to
supply the Marines with sample sleeping bags. Natick got back in the act but
would only use the continuous filament fiberfill quilted. Recently they accepted
Primaloft a chopped staple polyester fiberfill product not near as good as
the one they approved in 1980 which did not have a brand name. Actually they
would not recognize the Polar Guard name back then. Each product was only known
by its generic description until now when they specifically say Primaloft;
I wonder why? Trust me it is as poor a material as you can get to use for insulation.
They did not then and do not today acknowledge knowledge.
Coincidently the individual
who had the responsibility to show Natick the Polar Guard is also
the same person who brought to my attention the wool viscose rayon
fabric. He initially did not told me about its fire retardant properties
but rather that it did not retain odor. His idea was to make aerobic
wear from it. Imagine wearing a comfortable T-shirt while your working
out that did not retain body odor without the poisons associated with
the antimicrobial chemical additives now being used. The antimicrobial
or pesticide additives kill the microbes the body is eliminating via
the sweat glands before they get out of the pores. Now that they are
dead the body has to reabsorb them with the pesticides and where do
they go, into the blood stream (?) and then the liver; or into the
bodies fat reserves (?) I do not know but I do know antimicrobial
treated active wear is not healthy. The FR fabrics being used for
the military underwear is treated with the antimicrobial additives.
I directed him to the military when he told me the
material was being worn by workers in aluminum factories because it was also
flame retardant. This was 2005 prior to the Marines banning the wearing of
any synthetic underwear. By the time that occurred in 2006 thousands of pairs
of the Wickers fire retardant underwear had been purchased by Army Special
Forces, I was also providing the FR underwear to Marines who were stationed
in Iraq and active in the actions in Fallujah. It wasn’t until Natick
started looking into FR underwear did the antimicrobial aspect come about.
Maybe I’m wrong but if you have a proven product why not go with it.
If you still want to research for something else do it. Once again they choose
not to acknowledge knowledge.
Once again the internet proves its worth. The modacrylic
fiber is produced by a Japanese company “Kaneka Corporation” whose
brand name for the fiber is Protex. According to Jonathan Smith, technical
engineer and Protex manager at Waxman Fibers Ltd. (a European company that
distributes the modacrylic fiber for Kaneka) told the director: “when
the fiber comes in contact with a flame, it releases a small amount of gas,
which displaces the oxygen and extinguishes it.” The gas is heavier than
air so it displaces the oxygen so the flame dies away. What he did not say
is that the fiber does melt like any fiber made from a polymer (plastic substance)
which if lying against the surface of the skin will do as much damage as the
polyester that was banned. My friend
was recently interviewed by a reporter
for the Seattle Times and he demonstrated the properties of his wool
viscous rayon fiber product (Wickers brand underwear) and the Drifire
modacrylic (85% mod acrylic 15% viscous rayon) with a Bic lighter.
The Wickers product did not burn, it charred. When the lighter was
turned off the charring ceased and the edge of the garment was chard
and smooth to the touch. However, the Drifire garment initially started
to smoke, give off fumes (gas referred to by Jonathan Smith) which
are toxic antimony. The photographer as well as my friend was choking
almost immediately. The base of the garment lit by the same Bic lighter
did burn as long as the flame was there. Once extinguished the edge
of the garment was melted. The pictures and interview will appear
in the Tuesday December 18, 2006 edition. According to the Marine
Corps as seen in the article in the March 10, 2007 issue of Stars
and Stripes an IED generates about 1500 degrees of heat. That would
equate to opening the door to a blast furnace and just standing there.
What you are wearing that is exposed to the extreme heat would probably
flame and if you are wearing modacrylic underwear it would initially
melt and probably flame as well.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institute for Occupational
Safety state that antimony (a gas) can be quite harmful at low levels. Antimony
oxide is a primary fire retardant chemical used for the manufacture of modacrylic
fiber and the antimony is a suspected carcinogen. Furthermore the EPA, CDC,
and NIOSH have all categorized acrylonitrile used to make acrylic fiber and
modacrylic fiber as hazardous to human health and the environment. In addition
vinyl chloride used to convert acrylic fiber into modacrylic fiber is said
to be the same hazard to humans and the environment. Including being classified
as carcinogens. The primary effects from chronic (long term) exposure to antimony
in humans are respiratory effects that include antimony pneumoconiosis, alterations
in pulmonary function, chronic bronchitis, chronic emphysema, inactive tuberculosis,
pleural adhesions, cardiovascular effects and gastrointestinal disorders. “Web
site referral
weblakes.com/toxic/ANTIMONY_AND COMPOUNDS_HTML”
The question one might ask is; with
all of the information available why would anyone in the responsible position
of acquiring FR clothing for our military chose to move in the direction of
putting clothing on our soldiers that is made from material that has never
in the past been used for any clothing item worn close to the skin. It has
been used to make fake fur coats and it is not used for that any longer. The
answer is simple; there is only one company making an exceptional product,
Wicker’s. Other companies can if they do the research duplicate Wicker’s,
but they chose not too. So we have one company showing an acceptable proven
to perform product and 3 or 4 companies showing an unacceptable product so
the so called responsible people get competition and drive the price down to
an unacceptable level. I explained to my friends at Wicker’s they were
experiencing what I have gone through for years, being a single source, and
even though I have offered to sell my services to other makers who want to
produce bags for the military as I do they the makers have refused to take
me up on my offer because the so called people in the responsible position
do not want a single source. I would be the only supplier of the lamination
process. They do however in the area of sleeping bags contradict themselves
since the only company to get the large contracts is and has been since the
1980’s to the best of my knowledge Tennier Industries.
My observation of the overall
situation is comparing these so called persons of responsibility to
the Arab world. I have recently read books on the history of salt,
cotton and beverages. The Arab world for a few thousand years was
at the forefront of technology and science with respect to mathematics,
engineering, philosophy, etc. About the year 700 AD that all changed.
They have stayed in the eight century as far as I can see in general,
to this day. Those so called persons of responsibility would probably
be right at home if they were relocated to the Middle East, since
in my opinion they also appear not to think. Like the Arab world they
refuse to acknowledge knowledge.
If any of you reading this
article know someone serving in our military and stationed in the
Middle East send them the article so they can make the decision for
themselves if they want to wear the current issue FR underwear or
go to my web site and buy the Wicker’s underwear which has proven
to be “SIMPLY THE BEST” like my sleeping bags.
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