3rd Edition
Hazardous Materials Chemistry for Emergency Responders
The third edition of a bestseller, Hazardous Materials Chemistry for Emergency Responders continues to provide the fundamentals of "street chemistry" required by emergency response personnel. Emergency response and hazmat expert Robert Burke takes the basics of chemistry appropriate for response personnel and puts it into understandable terms. The author has retained the style and format that made the previous editions so popular while updating the information to keep the book relevant.
See What’s in the Third Edition:
- Expanded section on Ethanol and its hazards to responders
- Update of NFPA 472 Chemistry requirements
- Revised section on "hazmat elements" with more hazards and response issues
- Includes a focus on the importance of the "hazmat elements" of chemical families
- New incident examples
- New photographs and graphics
The chapters are organized by the nine U.S. Department of Transportation's hazard classes. Almost every hazardous material presents more than one hazard; the DOT’s placarding and labeling system only identifies the most severe hazards. Therefore, the book provides additional information about hidden hazards for each hazard class. It discusses individual chemicals, their hazards and their physical and chemical characteristics, both as distinct chemicals and within chemical families.
The book offers a concise presentation of the topics of most importance to emergency responders on a day-to-day basis. It provides the basic chemistry a responder needs to understand chemical terminology and communicate with others about the chemicals involved in hazardous materials incidents.
The Basics of Chemistry
The Atom
Ionic Bonding
Covalent Bonding
Salts
Non-Metal Compounds
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Chemical Statistics
Review Questions
Explosives
Definitions
Phases of Explosions
Types of Explosions
Components of an Explosion
Types of Chemical Explosives
Yield vs. Order
Divisions 1.1 to 1.3
Divisions 1.4 to 1.6
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Incidents
Military Explosives
Review Questions
Compressed Gases
Flammable Gases
Flammable Range
Vapor Density
Hydrocarbon Families
Hydrocarbon Derivatives
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Incidents
Non-Flammable Gases
Hydrocarbon Derivatives
Incidents
Poison Gases
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Incidents
Review Questions
Flammable Liquids
Effects of Temperature
Boiling Point
Flash Point
Factors Affecting Boiling Point
Vapor Density
Specific Gravity
Polymerization/Plastics
Ignition Temperature
Flammable Range
Animal/Vegetable Oils
Fire Extinguishing Agents
Hydrocarbons
Hydrocarbon Derivatives
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Incidents
Review Questions
Flammable Solids
Division 4.1 Flammable Solids
Sublimation/Flash Point Solids
Incidents
Combustible Dusts
Division 4.2 Spontaneously Combustible
Spontaneous Ignition
Pyrophoric Solids and Liquids
Incidents
Division 4.3 Dangerous When Wet
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Incidents
Review Questions
Oxidizers
Division 5.1 Oxidizers
Oxysalts
Peroxide Salts
Inorganic Acid Oxidizers
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Incidents
Division 5.2 Organic Peroxides
Incident
Review Questions
Poisons
Types of Exposure
Routes of Exposure
Effects of Exposure
Etiologic Effects
Variables of Toxic Effects
Dose/Response
Susceptible Target Organs
Rates of Exposure
Defense Mechanisms for Toxic Materials
Toxic Elements
Toxic Salts
Hydrocarbons
Hydrocarbon Derivatives
Miscellaneous Toxic Materials
Pesticides
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Military Chemical Warfare Agents
Incidents
Review Questions
Radioactive Materials
Radioactive Elements and Compounds
Uranium Compounds
Radium Compounds
Cobalt
Iodine
Review Questions
Corrosives
Inorganic Acids
Strength and Concentration
pH
Organic Acids
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Dilution vs. Neutralization
Incidents
Review Questions
Miscellaneous Hazardous Materials
Elevated Temperature Materials
Other Miscellaneous Hazardous Materials
Top 50 Industrial Chemicals
Incidents
Review Questions
Glossary
Appendix
List of Acronyms and Recognized Abbreviations
Numbers to Remember
Resource Guide
Selected Technical References
IUPAC Rules of Nomenclature
Answers to Review Questions
Biography
Robert A Burke is a Fire Marshal Hazardous Materials Technician at the University of Maryland.
"The approach and selection of topics is straightforward and logical with chapters building on material in previous sections. The selection of topics is comprehensive. ... Hazardous Materials Chemistry has been the primary textbook for teaching new hazmat crews for almost two decades and this updated new edition will be no exception."
—Harry J. Elston, Ph.D., CIH, Editor, Journal of Chemical Health & Safety
