Nomex®, an aramid blend fabric manufactured by DuPont, is inherently flame and heat resistant. It won’t melt, drip, burn or support combustion in air. This protection is PERMANENT - it cannot be washed out or worn out. Nomex® fabric comprises 93% meta-aramid (Nomex®) and 5% para-aramid (Kevlar®) and 2% P140 (static dissipative fibre). P140 is a proprietary static dissipative fibre that reduces static generated when fabric-to-fabric and fabric-to-surface rubbing occurs. It reduces nuisance static and contribution of clothing to the static charge buildup on the body, making garments more comfortable to wear. P140 is blended right into Nomex® fabric and its anti-static properties are effective even at humidity levels as low as 20%. Nomex® fabric is compliant to NFPA 2112 Standards.
In short, the key characteristics of Nomex® are as follows:
| Thermal | Nomex® is inherently flame resistant, which means that it does not melt but starts to decompose only at temperature above 370°C. |
| Chemical | Nomex® presents a high resistance to chemicals and does not dissolve easily. |
| Mechanical | Nomex® has high physical resistance, like high break and tear resistance and also presents high durability for example high abrasion resistance. |
There are two types of Nomex® FR Workwear fabrics:
- Comfort (also known as Delta C) FR Workwear: Made of finer Nomex® fibres (1.4 decitex) and has 106 fibres to the diameter of the yarn. The finer yarns make the fabric more comfortable for the wearer.
- IIIA FR Workwear: Made of slightly coarser blend fibre (1.7 decitex) and has 88 fibres to the diameter of the yarn. Both Nomex® Comfort and Nomex® IIIA have the same composition - 93% Nomex®, 5% Kevlar® and 2% P140 and perform equally well.