Glossary
Hazardous Materials Technician Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential hazardous materials technician terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key hazardous materials technician vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in hazardous materials technician training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- APR
- Air-purifying respirator: filters contaminants from ambient air.
- Contamination reduction zone (warm zone)
- The transition area where decontamination happens.
- Decontamination (decon)
- Removing contaminants from people and equipment.
- Exclusion zone (hot zone)
- The contaminated area where hazardous work occurs.
- Fit test
- A test confirming a tight-fitting respirator seals to your face.
- Friable asbestos
- Asbestos material that can be crumbled by hand pressure and release fibers.
- Glove bag
- A sealed bag used to remove asbestos insulation from pipes.
- Hazardous waste manifest
- The tracking document that follows hazardous waste from generator to disposal.
- HAZWOPER
- OSHA’s Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response standard (29 CFR 1910.120).
- HEPA
- High-efficiency particulate air filter, capturing at least 99.97% of 0.3-micron particles.
- Medical surveillance
- Medical exams to monitor workers exposed to hazardous substances.
- Negative air
- Machines that keep containment at lower pressure so contaminants don’t escape.
- PPE levels A–D
- EPA levels of protective equipment, from fully encapsulating (A) to work uniform (D).
- SCBA
- Self-contained breathing apparatus: supplies breathing air from a tank.
- Support zone (cold zone)
- The clean area for command and support.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Hazardous Materials Technician practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Hazardous Materials Technician training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.