## 1 Introduction  
Hand injuries are the most common type of injury we experience during our professional work. Their percentage, compared to all injuries, is 20-65%. Hand injuries sustained at work are much more severe compared to injuries sustained in other circumstances and require an extended period of treatment. It is impossible to completely avoid hand injuries during professional work because, in 90% of cases, injuries occur because of unpredictable and accidental human error [1; 2]. Gloves protecting against hot thermal factors are defined as gloves that protect the user's hands against heat from flames and hot surfaces of solids (e.g., metallurgical and blacksmith tools), hot liquids (e.g., molten metals), and gases (e.g., air heated by fire). Hot factors may occur in the form of radiant heat, convection heat, contact heat, flame, molten metal, or small gushes of molten metal. The possibility of protection against hot factors in industries such as metallurgy, welding, or foundry is a complex issue that requires a comprehensive approach and providing the employee with appropriate personal protective equipment [2]. Gloves intended to protect hands against hot factors, like other parts of protective clothing (firefighter garments [3; 4; 5], sleeping bags for newborns [6; 7], civilian clothing [8; 9; 10; 11; 12; 13]), are usually made of various materials or multilayer material systems (Figure 1). Due to their functions, the palm side and back side of the protective glove may differ in geometry and raw material composition, but both sides must be made of flame-retardant materials and meet appropriate thermal insulation standards. To produce this type of glove, mainly knitted fabrics or non-woven fabrics are used from yarn derived from Twaron, Kevlar, Basalt, Basofil, Nomex, and Preox fibers, flame-retardant impregnated wool yarn, cotton yarn, animal skins subjected to heat-resistant tanning, and aluminized fabrics made of Kevlar, Basalt, Nomex, and Twaron fibers [14]. An example of gloves protecting against hot factors are gloves intended for workers in the metallurgical industry and for steel workers. In this type of glove, the back side, along with the cuff, is made of aluminized fabrics made of aramid fibers or glass fibers. In addition, a lining made of flame-retardant, impregnated cotton fabric is also used. The palm side of the glove is made mainly of fabric obtained from yarn made of non-flammable fibers or heat-resistant leather. In the glove, thermal insulation inserts, available in various non-woven fabrics, are placed between the lining and the outer fabric. In the case of protective gloves, it is very difficult to achieve a balance between appropriate functional properties (physiological and sensory comfort) and ensuring appropriate protective properties. Protective gloves with a higher level of protection in terms of thermal insulation are usually made of several layers of various materials, which leads to a significant limitation of manual skills [14]. Basalt fibers are used in personal protective equipment because the products made of them are characterized by low moisture absorption, low thermal conductivity, and good thermal insulation in the temperature range from \(-260\)\({}^{\circ}\)C to \(+800\)\({}^{\circ}\)C [15; 16]. Additionally, basalt fibers are characterized by good resistance to chemicals, including alkalis and acids [15]. Due to the non-flammable properties of basalt fibers, materials made of them are resistant to flames for a long time [17; 18]. Moreover, they are resistant to microorganisms, UV radiation, and corrosion. They are characterized by a Limited Oxygen Index (LOI \(>70\%\)). This indicator is defined as the minimum concentration of oxygen contained in the mixture of oxygen and nitrogen necessary to maintain the combustion process. Basalt fabrics used without any coating may cause irritation to the skin, respiratory tract, and eyes [19]. Products made of basalt fibers do not emit toxic products in reaction with air or water.