Preparation of mixtures of humidified air with CO, SO2, NO2, NH3, NH2CH3, Cl2, and HCl to measure respirator cartridge and canister service life.

Four systems have been fabricated to measure the effective service life of respirator cartridges and canisters. The four systems employ carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide/nitrogen dioxide, ammonia/methylamine, and chlorine/hydrogen chloride as contaminants. Each system produces test concentrations in the low percentage range (typically 0.05 to 3.0%) at flow rates of 32 and 64 liters/min and at relative humidities between 20 and 95%. Suitable anlyzers have been provided to measure the downstream concentration from 1 to 500 ppm as a function of time. Holders have been designed to accommodate the wide size variation of commercially available cartridges and canisters.