3.3 Smoke and gas for tracing the air distribution
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Statutory Documents - IMO Publications and Documents - Circulars - Maritime Safety Committee - MSC/Circular.729 – Design Guidelines and Operational Recommendations for Ventilation Systems in Ro-Ro Cargo Spaces – (Adopted on 4 July 1996) - Part 1 - Design Guidelines and Operational Recommendations for Ventilation Systems in Ro-Ro Cargo Spaces - 3 Testing the Ventilation System - 3.3 Smoke and gas for tracing the air distribution

3.3 Smoke and gas for tracing the air distribution

 To improve the quality of the air at the workplace knowledge must be gained of how the pollution from the vehicles is diffused through the air in the ro-ro cargo space.

Visual tests using visible smoke do not provide any direct readings of the rate of air change or air distribution in a ro-ro cargo space, although they often provide sufficient indication of a satisfactory picture to be obtained of the air circulation, the existence of any stagnant or screened zones and the rate at which pollutants are removed by the ventilation system. Recommended methods using visible smoke or tracer gas are given in appendix 2.

The visible smoke method is simple and can readily be carried out by the officer responsible for ro-ro cargo space ventilation.

The use of tracer gas will give a more reliable picture of air changes and the air circulation in the ro-ro cargo space. However, the procedure for using tracer gas is more complicated. As the same measurement points are used, it is expedient to use tracer gas in combination with stationary monitoring of pollutant concentration in a ro-ro cargo space.

Parent topic: 3 Testing the Ventilation System
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