Study of Thermal Response of a Skin Stimulant Material with a Protective Fabric under a Hot Air Jet

The present study focuses on the thermal response of a skin simulant material with a protective fabric (Kevlar 49) under a flame blast condition. This investigation has been conducted using a stream of hot air jet that has been impinged normally on the test surface with/without protective fabric to mimic the flame burst condition. The air jet temperature is 125 °C and the jet velocity is 15 m/s and 19 m/s. The temperatures at various radial positions of the solid are measured using thermocouples and are used to calculate the surface heat flux to the skin simulant material. Subsequently, the local heat transfer coefficient and the local Nusselt Number for different radial positions of the base plate have been estimated, illustrated and analyzed for different longitudinal distance between nozzle and the test setup. The experimental results are then compared with Stoll Second Degree Burn Criterion of the ASTM Standard (F1060-01). The results show a significant reduction in heat transfer rate and exhibit an adequate protection due to the use of the protective fabric.