CHARACTERISTICS OF PHOTO-LUMINESCENT (PL) POWDER APPLIED WITH POLYESTER RESIN AS GLOW-IN-THE-DARK EMERGENCY SIGNAGE

Abstract

During a disaster, the rescuer must reach the disaster area within the fastest time with the help of navigation tools. However, there might be some obstacles during the night time that make the evacuation of the victims difficult especially due to the bad weather. Hence, an attempt to produce glow-in-the-dark emergency signage to ease the evacuation process and to enhance visibility during night time is necessary. In this present study, particular emphasis is given to investigate the characteristic of photo-luminescent (PL)powder applied with polyester resin as glow-in-the-dark emergency signage. Five samples of signage were fabricated with different percentage of PL powder, i.e. 20%, 40%. 60%, 80% and 100% and mixed with 150g polyester resin. Three types of luminance test were performed to check the workability of the samples. The tests are physical appearance, one-hours illuminance test and afterglow duration tests. The result showed that the maximum lux meter reading was recorded in Sample 5 with 6 lux luminosity and provided the longest glow duration of the sample before completely off after 12-hours. Results proved that the highest percentage of the PL powder content, the longer the afterglow duration will be achieved. It also noted that the polyester resin could be a good binder of PL powder for producing the glow-in-the-dark emergency signage.