An Apparatus for Evaluating Liquid Fire Suppressants

Published

May 12, 1998

Author(s)

Jiann C. Yang, Michelle K. Donnelly, William L. Grosshandler, N C. Prive

Abstract

Cup burners have been extensively used as a fire suppression efficiency screening tool for gaseous halon alternatives. In the search for alternatives to halons in fire suppression, it is likely that several types of condensed-phase compounds will be identified which may be delivered in droplet or aerosol form. Although cup burners have been used for evaluating condensed-phase agents (e.g., sodium bicarbonate powder), currently there is no apparatus designed specifically for screening liquid agents under well-controlled experimental conditions. The objective of this work is to design, construct and demonstrate a bench-scale device capable of screening the fire suppression efficiency of liquid agents. The design of the apparatus is based on a well-characterized flame, a means to facilitate the introduction of liquid agents, and a way to generate liquid droplets. These individual components will be described in detail in the following sections. Since the project is on-going, its current status will be discussed, and some encouraging preliminary results will be presented.

Citation

Special Publication (NIST SP) - 984-4

Report Number

984-4

NIST Pub Series

Special Publication (NIST SP)

Pub Type

NIST Pubs

Download Paper

Local Download

Keywords

halon alternatives, halons, blowoff, burners, diffusion flames, droplets, fire suppression

Citation

Yang, J. , Donnelly, M. , Grosshandler, W. and Prive, N. (1998), An Apparatus for Evaluating Liquid Fire Suppressants, Special Publication (NIST SP), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=909149 (Accessed November 9, 2024)