What is this standard about?
BS 8618:2015 specifies minimum performance criteria for carbon dioxide absorbent materials for use in life-support applications. It aims to ensure the quality, performance and safety of carbon dioxide absorbent materials by standardizing methods for the assessment of granular and pelleted carbon dioxide absorbent material.
Who is this standard for?
- Manufacturers of diving rebreathers
- Rebreather escape equipment manufacturers
- Manufacturers of hyperbaric dive chambers
- Manufacturers of soda lime
- Military
- Diving industry
- Fire and rescue services
- Personal safety equipment manufacturers
Why should you use this standard?
This standard should improve the safety of life-support systems. Carbon dioxide absorbent materials remove the CO2 from the breathing gas in life support systems and can ensure that exhaled CO2 is removed from closed-circuit systems. This is very important in life support systems that rely on the recirculation of breathing gas, both on surface and underwater.
Rebreather incidents involving carbon dioxide absorbent systems are unfortunately still quite common and can result in blackout or death. BS 8618 is the first standard to enable a defined performance and quality of the materials used in a rebreather system.
