Tyco Fire Protection Products showcased its expertise in water mist suppression solutions on the International Water Mist Association (IWMA) Conference in Istanbul. Dr Tim Nichols, Sales Director Water Mist EMEA, gave a presentation entitled ‘Fire Protection of Compact Archive Storage utilizing Water Mist’, where he discussed how the extinguishant is properly suited to the safety of irreplaceable works and artefacts in extremely valuable buildings.
Tim’s lecture targeted on a hearth check protocol that was formulated to verify the efficiency and use of Tyco’s personal water mist answer, AquaMist, in an historical constructing, residence to valuable archive storage. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 750 normal requires that, when employing a water mist suppression system, fireplace testing is undertaken pertinent to the risk. However, of the printed hearth test protocols listed in NFPA 750, none particulars the necessities for archives that comprise curler (compact) racking. Many of the racks in the focused building are of the ‘roller’ type, which limit the amount of space for building services, including those for extinguishing system pipework.
Together with the venture stakeholders, Tyco devised the protocol to include take a look at rig and structure, take a look at kind, fireplace load, information acquisition (for instance, sensors and imaging), hardware required (such as pumps, nozzles, pipe, tank, generator), and well being and safety procedures (for occasion, the hearth brigade). The related performance based hearth tests had been then designed to replicate the vary of utility parameters associated with archive storage.
While ignition sources at the unique site have been recognized to be minimal, and the principle fireplace supply confirmed as arson, the multi-level constructing poses numerous challenges that needed to be considered when formulating the hearth check protocol to ensure effective safety. Low ceilings and quite a few obstructions, corresponding to lighting, ducts and pillars, contribute in course of the confined environment of the archive storage basement stage. Items are saved in a mix of open racks and compact racks, which supply lower than a 150mm hole between themselves and the ceiling, and there’s restricted on-site water storage. Pre-test danger analysis additionally highlighted restricted entry and exits under and above ground, so it’s important for cupboard space to be maximised and safe egress provided in case of the event of a hearth. In addition, the highly useful nature of the storage contents meant that the selected fire suppression solution had to ensure minimal harm to these historical gadgets.
To obtain validation, the tests had to meet numerous aims. เกจ์อาร์กอนsumo comprised fast control of the fire within a prescribed area (in this case, defined as inside a block of racks); management of temperature; attenuation of radiation; and minimisation of collateral injury via water clean-up. They additionally needed to bear in mind varied parameters, together with the specified excessive stress mist system; a 30 minute run time; and an annual measurable achievement objective (AMAO) outlined in accordance with a method based mostly on the quantity of nozzles activating throughout testing.
The fire checks, carried out for each open and curler racks with minimum storage gaps, have been undertaken in a personalized check rig, designed, built and fitted to copy the exact specification, racking preparations and storage materials of the site. Considered a excessive load, the fuel materials had been similar to that found in archive storage, including paper, books, micro-film and CD instances.
Success was outlined by cross or fail standards and decided by detailed quantitative measurements on system configuration, hydraulic analysis, discharge stress, discharge sequence, fireplace spread, temperature, hearth injury and water consumption. In both tests, Tyco’s AquaMist system operated successfully and was observed to suppress and management the fireplace effectively. The venture group was impressed by the dearth of fire and smoke injury to the supplies and construction and the product has since been installed within the building in question.
“The IWMA convention is a fantastic opportunity to spotlight the advantages of water mist as a fire suppression solution, in addition to show its versatility in a variety of applications,” comments Dr Tim Nichols. “Identifying a niche in the market and taking the opportunity to formulate a fireplace take a look at protocol for archive storage enabled us to validate the skilled capabilities of our AquaMist system and facilitate safety of a customer’s extremely valuable property.”
For more information, go to www.tfppemea.com
Share