If you cannot find PPE materials that will provide continuous protection from a particular hazardous substance, what should the breakthrough time of the protective material exceed?

The breakthrough time of the protective material should exceed the duration of your work. This is crucial because the breakthrough time refers to the amount of time it takes for a hazardous substance to permeate through the protective equipment. To ensure safety, the protective equipment must be able to withstand the hazardous exposure for the entire time that you are engaged in the task without allowing any harmful substances to penetrate the gear.

If the breakthrough time is shorter than the duration of your work, there is a significant risk that you could be exposed to hazardous substances once the protective material fails. Therefore, ensuring that the protective gear offers adequate coverage for the length of time you will be in contact with the hazardous environment is a key aspect of maintaining safety in operations involving potentially harmful substances. Having adequate protection is vital to reducing the likelihood of health hazards associated with chemical exposure.