Hazardous Materials Technician (Hazmat
Technician) Questions and Answers Exam
HMT shall be able to - ANSWER>>analyze
plan
implement
terminate
Biological hazards - ANSWER>>Microoganisms, bacteria, viruses, that may cause
severe, disabling disease or illness
can be transferred from blood or other bodily fluids
Corrosivity Hazards - ANSWER>>Materials that destroy living tissue and damage
or destroy metal
Acids or bases
Explosivity - ANSWER>>rapid release of energy or rapid release upon activation
Reactivity - ANSWER>>the ability of a substance to go through a chemical change
Radioactivity - ANSWER>>non ionizing --> ionizing
Three types of energy - ANSWER>>Explosivity
Reactivity
Radioactivity
Flammability - ANSWER>>materials susceptibility to ignite
flammability determines incident strategies and tactics
,Oxygen concentration - ANSWER>>amount of oxygen in a given system like blood
or in liquid or gas
19.5-23.5 normal
below 19.5 deficient
above 23.5 enriched
Thermal hazards - ANSWER>>Heat- temperature extremes, fires/explosions
involving flammable liquids/explosive materials can cause burns
cold- lack of heat, cryogenic, liquified gases, cold atmospheric temperatures
Toxicity - ANSWER>>chemical or biological substances that cause sickness or
illness
damage of the molecular scale when in contact w the body
Gases - ANSWER>>mostly sink and displace air while only a few rise and float
above
Before monitoring activity - ANSWER>>1. purpose
2. anticipated reading
Hazardous Solids - ANSWER>>will usually not travel far unless blown by wind or
dispersed by explosion
Hazardous Liquids - ANSWER>>vaporize, expand rapidly
potentially travel great distances
Hazardous Gases - ANSWER>>expand rapidly, fill enclosed spaces and may travel
great distances
can kill quickly if inhaled
,Selection & maintenance of detection & monitoring devices include: -
ANSWER>>mission
suspected hazards involved
portability and user friendliness
Instrument Reaction Time - ANSWER>>ranging from seconds to minutes between
the time detected and display of reading
Sensitivity and selectivity - ANSWER>>Some instruments will detect lower
concentrations than others, while others will only detect very specific materials.
Responders must consider how well the instrument will detect the desired
chemical or chemical family and to what degree.
Calibration - ANSWER>>Most instruments need prior to use, per AHJ and
manufacturer recommendations
temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure affects this process
ALWAYS refer to manufacturer
Calibration Test (Bump test) - ANSWER>>- Ensures that sensors function
appropriately for alarms and other functions
- Does not test the accuracy of the sensor
Zeroing - ANSWER>>Resetting an instrument read at normal (baseline) levels in
fresh air.
Steps for identifying an unknown atmosphere - ANSWER>>Radioactivity
Flammability/Combustibility
Oxygen availability
Corrosives
Toxics
Exothermic reactions
Oxidizers
, Radiation- Roetgen - ANSWER>>Rem- large amounts of radiation
mrem- small doses
Roetgen=rad=rem
rem-Roentgen Equivilent Man
Roetgen only measures gamma/Xray
radiation absorbed dose (rad) - ANSWER>>unit used to measure the amount of
energy absorbed in any material
applies to all radiation
does NOT take potential effect into account
SI system - ANSWER>>International System of units based on the metric system
and units derived from the metric syste
Gray (Gy) and Siverts (Sv)
Radiation Detectors - ANSWER>>Gas-filled and Scintillators
Gas filled detectors - ANSWER>>Radiation ionizes gas inside detection chamber &
instruments electronics measure quantity of ions created. Iron chambers &
Geiger-Mueller (GM) detectors are common
Ion chambers - ANSWER>>affected by temperature and humidity
responses directly proportional to the intensity of the radiation, making them
reliable instruments when encountering radiations with varying energies
GM dector or GM tube - ANSWER>>Temperature and humidity do NOT typically
affect detectors because they are sealed from ambient air, sealed metal body that
detects gamma
Technician) Questions and Answers Exam
HMT shall be able to - ANSWER>>analyze
plan
implement
terminate
Biological hazards - ANSWER>>Microoganisms, bacteria, viruses, that may cause
severe, disabling disease or illness
can be transferred from blood or other bodily fluids
Corrosivity Hazards - ANSWER>>Materials that destroy living tissue and damage
or destroy metal
Acids or bases
Explosivity - ANSWER>>rapid release of energy or rapid release upon activation
Reactivity - ANSWER>>the ability of a substance to go through a chemical change
Radioactivity - ANSWER>>non ionizing --> ionizing
Three types of energy - ANSWER>>Explosivity
Reactivity
Radioactivity
Flammability - ANSWER>>materials susceptibility to ignite
flammability determines incident strategies and tactics
,Oxygen concentration - ANSWER>>amount of oxygen in a given system like blood
or in liquid or gas
19.5-23.5 normal
below 19.5 deficient
above 23.5 enriched
Thermal hazards - ANSWER>>Heat- temperature extremes, fires/explosions
involving flammable liquids/explosive materials can cause burns
cold- lack of heat, cryogenic, liquified gases, cold atmospheric temperatures
Toxicity - ANSWER>>chemical or biological substances that cause sickness or
illness
damage of the molecular scale when in contact w the body
Gases - ANSWER>>mostly sink and displace air while only a few rise and float
above
Before monitoring activity - ANSWER>>1. purpose
2. anticipated reading
Hazardous Solids - ANSWER>>will usually not travel far unless blown by wind or
dispersed by explosion
Hazardous Liquids - ANSWER>>vaporize, expand rapidly
potentially travel great distances
Hazardous Gases - ANSWER>>expand rapidly, fill enclosed spaces and may travel
great distances
can kill quickly if inhaled
,Selection & maintenance of detection & monitoring devices include: -
ANSWER>>mission
suspected hazards involved
portability and user friendliness
Instrument Reaction Time - ANSWER>>ranging from seconds to minutes between
the time detected and display of reading
Sensitivity and selectivity - ANSWER>>Some instruments will detect lower
concentrations than others, while others will only detect very specific materials.
Responders must consider how well the instrument will detect the desired
chemical or chemical family and to what degree.
Calibration - ANSWER>>Most instruments need prior to use, per AHJ and
manufacturer recommendations
temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure affects this process
ALWAYS refer to manufacturer
Calibration Test (Bump test) - ANSWER>>- Ensures that sensors function
appropriately for alarms and other functions
- Does not test the accuracy of the sensor
Zeroing - ANSWER>>Resetting an instrument read at normal (baseline) levels in
fresh air.
Steps for identifying an unknown atmosphere - ANSWER>>Radioactivity
Flammability/Combustibility
Oxygen availability
Corrosives
Toxics
Exothermic reactions
Oxidizers
, Radiation- Roetgen - ANSWER>>Rem- large amounts of radiation
mrem- small doses
Roetgen=rad=rem
rem-Roentgen Equivilent Man
Roetgen only measures gamma/Xray
radiation absorbed dose (rad) - ANSWER>>unit used to measure the amount of
energy absorbed in any material
applies to all radiation
does NOT take potential effect into account
SI system - ANSWER>>International System of units based on the metric system
and units derived from the metric syste
Gray (Gy) and Siverts (Sv)
Radiation Detectors - ANSWER>>Gas-filled and Scintillators
Gas filled detectors - ANSWER>>Radiation ionizes gas inside detection chamber &
instruments electronics measure quantity of ions created. Iron chambers &
Geiger-Mueller (GM) detectors are common
Ion chambers - ANSWER>>affected by temperature and humidity
responses directly proportional to the intensity of the radiation, making them
reliable instruments when encountering radiations with varying energies
GM dector or GM tube - ANSWER>>Temperature and humidity do NOT typically
affect detectors because they are sealed from ambient air, sealed metal body that
detects gamma
