ASTM F2302-22

This document is not an ASTM standard and is intended only to provide the user of an ASTM standard an indication of what changes have been made to the previous version. Because
it may not be technically possible to adequately depict all changes accurately, ASTM recommends that users consult prior editions as appropriate. In all cases only the current version
of the standard as published by ASTM is to be considered the official document.
Designation: F2302 − 20 F2302 − 22
Standard Performance Specification for
Labeling Protective Clothing Which Provides Resistance to
Incidental Exposures to Heat or Open Flame
This standard is issued under the fixed designation F2302; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (´) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.
1. Scope
1.1 This specification provides minimum requirements for labeling protective clothing offering heat, flame, and melting resistance
for applications where the potential exists for incidental exposure to open flame, radiant heat sources, or hot surfaces which could
melt or ignite materials.
1.1.1 Examples of possible applications for this specification include safety apparel, including high-visibility safety apparel, in
situations where the possibility exists for accidental contact with hot surfaces, radiant heat sources, or an open flame; clothing worn
by individuals for chemical, liquid, or particle protection where the possibility exists for clothing to similarly contact a burner or
similar low-intensity flame source; or other clothing worn by individuals that comes in contact with torch flames, hot piping, or
other surfaces that melt, degrade, or ignite clothing materials by proximity or contact.
1.1.2 This specification is not to be used for separate claims for flame resistance (“FR”), heat resistance, or protection against the
transfer of thermal energy. Instead, clothing materials are required to be evaluated for the combination of flame and heat resistance
tests.
1.1.3 This specification does not include a test for establishing protection levels against specific hazards where clothing insulation
is needed such as from flash fires, exposure to high-energy electrical arc, or extended duration fires. This specification does not
replace and shall not be used in lieu of existing standards where well-defined criteria are established for protection of workers from
known characterized intense thermal hazards such as flash fires (NFPA 2112), high-energy electrical arc (Specification F1506), or
wildland firefighting (NFPA 1977). See Appendix X1 for a list of standards for heat and flame-resistant protective clothing.
1.1.4 This specification includes requirements that define resistance to melting and combustion of materials used in personal
protective clothing in a manner to limit the contribution of the clothing for causing injury to the wearer when exposed to low levels
of heat or flame. The primary mechanisms by which a garment can contribute to injury are by the garment igniting and supporting
combustion, and if the garment melts onto the wearer’s skin.
1.1.5 This specification is applicable to all materials used in the construction of the protective clothing, including lining materials
and materials that contact the skin or underclothing of the wearer. Exclusions are permitted for some materials such as labels and
small components that do not come in contact with the wearer’s skin or underclothing.
1.1.6 This specification does not include testing for the evaluation of the entire clothing item.
1.1.7 This specification does not include procedures for testing of gloves or footwear.
This specification is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee F23 on Personal Protective Clothing and Equipment and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee
F23.80 on Flame and Thermal.
Current edition approved Oct. 1, 2020March 1, 2022. Published October 2020March 2022. Originally approved in 2003. Last previous edition approved in 20192020 as
F2302 – 19.F2302 – 20. DOI: 10.1520/F2302-20.10.1520/F2302-22.
Copyright © ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959. United States
F2302 − 22
1.1.8 This specification does applyis applicable to hoods, balaclavas, shrouds, neck gaiters, clothbarrier face coverings, and other
items of apparel that are primarily worn on the individual wearer’s head.
1.2 This specification does not apply to protective clothing that is addressed in other standards for specific applications including
electrical arc flash, flash fire, and various types of firefighting or emergency response. See Appendix X1 for a list of standards for
heat and flame-resistant protective clothing.
1.3 The values stated in SI units or in other units shall be regarded separately as standard. The values stated in each system must
be used independently of the other, without combining values in any way.
1.4 This standard measures and describes the response of materials, products, or assemblies to heat and flame under controlled
conditions, but does not by itself incorporate all factors required for fire hazard or fire risk assessment of the materials, products,
or assemblies under actual fire conditions.
1.5 The following precautionary caveat pertains only to the test methods portion, Section 8, of this specification: This standard
does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this
standard to establish appropriate safety, health, and environmental practices and determine the applicability of regulatory
limitations prior to use.
1.6 This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization
established in the Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued
by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.
2. Referenced Documents
2.1 ASTM Standards:
D123 Terminology Relating to Textiles
D4391 Terminology Relating to The Burning Behavior of Textiles
D6413/D6413M Test Method for Flame Resistance of Textiles (Vertical Test)
D7138 Test Method to Determine Melting Temperature of Synthetic Fibers
E171/E171M Practice for Conditioning and Testing Flexible Barrier Packaging
F1358 Test Method for Effects of Flame Impingement on Materials Used in Protective Clothing Not Designated Primarily for
Flame Resistance
F1494 Terminology Relating to Protective Clothing
F1506 Performance Specification for Flame Resistant and Electric Arc Rated Protective Clothing Worn by Workers Exposed to
Flames and Electric Arcs
F2101 Test Method for Evaluating the Bacterial Filtration Efficiency (BFE) of Medical Face Mask Materials, Using a Biological
Aerosol of Staphylococcus aureus
F2299/F2299M Test Method for Determining the Initial Efficiency of Materials Used in Medical Face Masks to Penetration by
Particulates Using Latex Spheres
F2894 Test Method for Evaluation of Materials, Protective Clothing, and Equipment for Heat Resistance Using a Hot Air
Circulating Oven
2.2 AATCC Standards:
AATCC 132 Colorfastness to Drycleaning
AATCC 135 Dimensional Changes in Automatic Home Laundering of Woven and Knit Fabrics
2.3 NFPA Standard:
NFPA 1977 Protective Clothing and Equipment for Wildland Fire Fighting
2.4 European Standard:
EN 14683 Medical Face Masks—Requirements and Test Methods
3. Terminology
3.1 Definitions—For definitions of terms used in this specification related to the combustion of textiles, refer to the terminology
For referenced ASTM standards, visit the ASTM website, www.astm.org, or contact ASTM Customer Service at service@astm.org. For Annual Book of ASTM Standards
volume information, refer to the standard’s Document Summary page on the ASTM website.
Available from American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC), P.O. Box 12215, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, http://www.aatcc.org.
Available from National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, MA 02169-7471, http://www.nfpa.org.
Available from British Standards Institution (BSI), 389 Chiswick High Rd., London W4 4AL, U.K., http://www.bsigroup.com.
F2302 − 22
contained in Terminology D4391. For definitions of terms used in this specification related to protective clothing, refer to the
terminology contained in Terminology F1494. For definitions of terms used in this specification related to textile issues, refer to
the terminology contained in Terminology D123.
3.2 afterflame, n—persistent flaming of a material after the ignition source has been removed.
3.3 afterflame time, n—the length of time for which a material continues to flame after the ignition source has been removed.
3.4 afterglow, n—a glow in a material after the removal of an external ignition source, after the cessation (natural or induced) of
flaming of the material (see also glow).
3.5 barrier face covering, n—an item of clothing, primarily covering the nose and mouth, designed to reduce the community
spread of bioaerosols.
3.5.1 Discussion—
These clothing items are primarily intended to attenuate the volume of bioaerosols that are exhaled or released during coughing
and sneezing by the individual wearer to aid in lessening the transmission of airborne pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2, the virus
responsible for COVID-19. These clothing items are not protective masks or medical masks and are not evaluated for their
protective performance in accordance with this standard.
3.6 burn distance, n—the measurement from the bottom edge of the specimen to the farthest point that shows evidence of damage
due to combustion.
3.6.1 Discussion—
In this specification, burn distance is used when testing is performed in accordance with Test Method F1358.
3.7 burning behavior, n—all the changes that take place when materials or products are exposed to a specified ignition source.
3.8 char length, n—in measuring flame resistance of textiles, the distance from the fabric edge which is directly exposed to the
flame to the furthest point of visible fabric damage after a specified tearing force has been applied.
3.8.1 Discussion—
In this specification, char length is reported when testing is performed in accordance with Test Method D6413/D6413M.
3.9 charring, n—the formation of carbonaceous residue as the result of pyrolysis or incomplete combustion.
3.9 cloth face covering, n—an item of clothing, primarily covering the nose and mouth, designed to reduce the community spread
of bioaerosols.
3.9.1 Discussion—
These clothing items are primarily intended to attenuate the volume of bioaerosols that are exhaled or released during coughing
and sneezing by the individual wearer to aid in lessening the transmission of airborne pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2, the virus
responsible for COVID-19. These clothing items are not protective masks or medical masks and are not evaluated for their
protective performance in accordance with this standard.
3.10 combustion, n—a chemical process of oxidation that occurs at a rate fast enough to produce heat and usually light either as
glow or flames.
3.11 dripping, n—a material response evidenced by flowing of the polymer.
3.11.1 Discussion—
In evaluating the effects of flame contact or heat exposure of materials used in protective clothing, dripping may be the formation
of liquid droplets from melted surface or substrate material during flame impingement or high heat exposure.
3.12 embrittlement, n—the formation of a brittle residue as the result of pyrolysis or incomplete combustion.
3.13 flame, n—as related to ignition of textiles, a controlled hot luminous zone of gas or matter in gaseous suspension, or both,
of constant size and shape that is undergoing combustion as evidenced by a low-intensity heat source of less than 1 kW, such as
a candle flame or match flame.
3.13.1 Discussion—
F2302 − 22
Examples are flames from a match, candle, or bunsen burner. The burner flame in this specification produces relatively low heat
flux and should be constant in size and shape.
3.14 flame application time, n—the time interval for which the ignition flame is applied to a material.
3.15 flame resistance, n—the property of a material whereby flaming combustion is prevented, terminated, or inhibited following
application of a flaming or nonflaming source of ignition, with or without the subsequent removal of the ignition source.
3.15.1 Discussion—
In this specification, flame resistance is demonstrated by testing to Test Method D6413/D6413M or Test Method F1358 and
meeting specific performance criteria.
3.16 flammability, n—those characteristics of a material that pertain to its ignition and support of combustion.
3.17 glow, n—visible, flameless combustion of the solid phase of a material.
3.17.1 Discussion—
Although a solid may glow, it can also produce combustible discharge that will cause a flame. These two phenomena are not
necessarily interdependent.
3.18 heat resistance, n—the extent to which a material retains useful properties as measured after exposure of the material to a
specified temperature and environment for a specified time.
3.18.1 Discussion—
In this specification, heat resistance or the heat stability of the material is demonstrated by testing in accordance with Test Method
F2894 at a temperature of 260 °C [500 °F] for 5 min without ignition, melting, dripping, or separation of the material and without
material shrinkage greater than 20 %.
3.19 ignition, n—the initiation of combustion.
3.19.1 Discussion—
In evaluating the effects of flame contact or heat exposure of materials used in protective clothing, ignition is determined by the
presence of afterflame after the removal of the burner flame or when observing the condition of the specimen(s) inside the oven
after opening the oven door.
3.20 melting, n—a material response evidenced by softening of the polymer.
3.20.1 Discussion—
In evaluating the effects of flame contact or heat exposure of materials used in protective clothing, melting may occur at surface
layers or in combination with the substrate fabric(s) or other polymer layers. Melting may be observed for protective clothing
materials that involve a polymer coating or laminate combined with a flame-resistant fabric or substrate.
3.21 protective clothing, n—an item of clothing that is specifically designed and constructed for the intended purpose of isolating
all or part of the body from a potential hazard; or, isolating the external environment from contamination by the wearer of the
clothing.
3.22 separation, n—in testing thermal protective clothing, the partial or full detachment of one or more layers comprising a
material
3.22.1 Discussion—
In evaluating the effects of heat exposure, separation occurs when the face cloth detaches from the batting for quilted material or
if a film or coating lifts from a substrate fabric.
3.23 shrinkage, n—a decrease in one or more dimensions of an object or material.
3.23.1 Discussion—
In evaluating the effects of flame contact or heat exposure, these changes in dimensions are caused by heat from the flame source
or convection within the oven.
4. Significance and Use
4.1 This specification is used to establish the minimum performance requirements for labeling protective clothing as providing
both heat and flame resistance where the clothing is intended not to contribute to burn injury by continued burning or melting onto
F2302 − 22
the wearer’s skin. Testing is performed on the product in both an “as-received” condition and after ten laundering or dry cleaning
cycles using standardized procedures. Users of this specification are also permitted to use laundering or dry cleaning procedures
for conditioning samples as specified in the manufacturer’s care instructions for a minimum of ten cycles. Procedures in this
standard also permit the testing of single-use garments materials in an as-received condition only.
4.1.1 For the purposes of this standard, clothing flame and heat resistance is intended to provide an indication that the materials
used in the construction of the clothing are less likely to contribute to burn injury or worsen its severity by continued flaming if
ignited and melting onto the wearer’s skin after coming in momentary contact with an isolated high heat or open flame heat source.
It is still possible that individuals wearing clothing meeting this specification will still be burned because the clothing item has not
been evaluated for its capability to provide insulation to different types of high-energy heat sources
4.2 This specification does not replace standards that have already been developed for specific types of flame and heat-resistant
protective clothing, including clothing for protection from flash fire, clothing for protection against electric arc flash, and protective
clothing for various firefighting and emergency response applications. Only use the standard specific to the application for which
the protective clothing is to be used. See Appendix X1 for a list of specifications for specific types of heat and flame-resistant
protective clothi
...