Oxidizers and Pool Chemicals

Oxidizers are highly energetic chemicals that react violently with many other materials and may be involved in fires that are extremely difficult to extinguish. Swimming pool and spa chemicals are a class of inorganic oxidizers (DOT Hazard Class 5.1) that are commonly used in private, municipal, hotel and school pools and water treatment facilities. Swimming pool chemistry is discussed in terms of recognizing what chemicals and equipment you may expect to see and what has gone wrong when your hazardous materials response team has been summoned to an evacuation at a local pool. Several videos have been prepared that show violent reactions when incompatible materials are mixed with common pool chemicals. Organic peroxides, including hydrogen peroxide, (DOT Hazard Class 5.2) are widely used in pulp and paper manufacture, sanitizing surfaces in food processing plants, a variety of polymerization processes and synthetic organic reactions. Physical and chemical properties (The HazMat Dirty Dozen) and reactivity of organic peroxides are discussed and observed with video demonstrations. Students will learn to assess chemical hazards and risks using the APIE risk assessment model (Analyze, Plan, Implement and Evaluate) and develop the appropriate tactical response to those hazards during spills and fires involving inorganic and organic oxidizers in compliance with the advanced chemical risk assessment and analysis competency outlined in Chapter 38 of NFPA 470 (2022). This knowledge will allow students to provide their IC with recommendations for PPE, Zones and Perimeters Delineation, Monitoring, Decontamination, Respiratory Protection, Site Safety Plan, Evacuation vs Shelter-in-Place, etc.