What Does
Abrasion Resistance Mean?
Abrasion resistance is a property of certain types of personal protective equipment (PPE). It refers to a synthetic fabric’s ability to buffer against abrasive injuries.
Abrasive injuries are a common hazard for workers in various industries. These are injuries that occur when friction or impact wear off the upper layers of the skin.
Safeopedia Explains Abrasion Resistance
Cement-laying, working with a grinding stone, paint-stripping furniture, and exposure to abrasive chemicals are various instances wherein a worker may be exposed to abrasion injuries and wounds to the hands or other parts of the body.
Preventing abrasion wounds and injuries is mainly the domain of abrasion-resistant protective gear, including gloves and sleeves. Bearing in mind that common fabrics worn outside of the work environment are not particularly abrasion-resistant and are prone to wear and tear due to continued friction, the use of special synthetic fabrics to produce PPE is recommended by workplace safety organizations to prevent minor and major abrasive wounds among workers in varying industries.
Abrasion-resistant fabrics include Kevlar, aramid, and Cordura nylon.
For workers dealing with various chemicals and liquids with abrasive properties, OSHA recommends the use of gloves made from varying types of rubber including natural rubber, latex, butyl, nitrile, neoprene, and fluorocarbon, as well as a variation of plastics including polyvinyl chloride, polyvinyl alcohol, and polyethylene.