Fire Safety Science Digital Archive

In this paper modes of action of passive fire protection agents, incorporated chemically into materials and products, are discussed in terms of resistance to ignition and fire propagation and reduction in heat release rate. The effectiveness of these agents in large-scale fires, to enhance the ease of fire control, suppression and extinguishment by water, in warehouses is evaluated. All the experiments were performed in the Factory Mutual Research Corporation's 50 kW-, 500 kW- and 10,000 kW-Scales Flammability Apparatuses. The modes of action of the agents appear to be chemical in nature. The ratio of the yields of CO to C02 increases and the chemical heat of combustion decreases with an increase in the amount of the agent incorporated into the materials and products. In the Large-Scale Warehouse Simulation Tests, corrugated paper cartons treated with a passive fire protection agent, identified as A, and a plastic product treated with another agent, identified as B, were found to significantly reduce water demand for fire control, suppression and extinguishment.