ems
XIII. pH JOINT QMC-CMLC REPORT.
ETF - 760.932-1
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LAUNDERING DECONTAMINATION TEST CONDUCTED JOINTLY
BY QMC and CMLC AT OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY.
Howard James, John C. McWorter, Jr., John A. Pierce, Jr.,
William H. Carr, Jr., 9 September 1950. _,
CONFIDENTIAL
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Published jointly by:
Research and Development Division
Office of the Quartermaster General
Washington, D. C.
and:
Chemical and Radiological Labs
Army Chemical Center, Maryland
Preparatory to Operation GREENHOUSE, the Quartermaster Corps and
the Chemical Corps ran joint tests on the decontamination of clothing
contaminated by immersion in dilute dissolver solution.
The standard
Quartermaster laundry formulas were relatively ineffective in removing such
contamination, but a specially developed formula (No. 77) was found to be
effective.
Synthetic detergents were found to have better decontaminating
properties than fatty-acid soap, and citric acid was the most effective
decontaminant tested.
Naphtha dry cleaning proved unsatisfactory for
clothing decontamination,
There were several related conclusions:
(1)
Standard Quartermaster Corps mobile laundry equipment proved suitable for laundering
contaminated clothing.
Where corrosion-resistant machines were used, no
injury to tre equipment resulted, nor was decontamination of the machines
@ problem.
(2)
The degree of its wear appeared to have no effect on the
susceptibility to contamination or decontamination of khaki or fatigue
clothing. (3) Synthetic fibers appeared to be more readily decontaminable
than cottons or woolens. (4) The disposal of laundry waste water depends
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W
vty ly
upon the contaminant decay rate and the degree of dilution.
Contaminants
in the waste water could not be removed by either a water-purification
unit developed by the Corps of Engineers or by an electrophoretic filter.