Emmergency breathing apparatus are respiratory protective devices for emergency evacuations. They are regulated through the DIN 58847-7 standard for air purifying units – escape respirator – and the DIN EN 13794 standard for air supplying units – EEBDs and SCSR devices. They can only be used in this special case (emergency evacuation) and are not designed for use in on-site interventions or rescue operations.
Escape respirator
An escape respirator is a respiratory protective device for emergency evacuations. These escape devices are composed by half-masks or hoods equipped with an ABEK specific filter. Like gas masks, they are effective to protect their users against organic, inorganic (except carbon monoxide) and acid substances, sulfur and ammonia compounds but offer a 15 minutes lifetime (time to evacuate).
As they are air purifying devices, an emergency escape respirator and emergency escape hood can only be used if the oxygen rate in ambient air is above 19% volume.
Scsr – self-contained self-rescue device
An SCSR - or self-contained self-rescuer - is an emergency solution safer than air purifying escape respirators. This respiratory protective equipment is a closed circuit atmosphere supplying respirator. This means that air is expired in the SCSR bag, then filtered and re-oxygenated, renewed to be breathable again.
Because of their properties, SCSRs are perfectly suitable for confined space applications or for interventions in poorly oxygenated areas like mines. There are two categories of self-rescuer masks:
. Chemical oxygen self-rescuer that uses a KO2 cartridge (potassium superoxide), which chemically reacts with the expired air in the bag to produce oxygen complement
. Compressed oxygen self-rescuer which uses a small compressed oxygen cylinder to re-oxygenate expired air
In both cases, the SCSR chemical process will trap CO2 (carbon dioxide) contained in the expired air.