F.H. Prager

The Suitability of the Din 53436 Test Apparatus for the Simulation of a Fire Risk Situation With Flaming Combustion

The fundamental considerations about the suitability of the DIN tube furnace for simulating the various fire models are discussed. By preliminary tests including the variation of test parameters it could be demonstrated, that in comparison to other decomposition models this method seems to be suitable to simulate real fire situations.

Assessment of fire model DIN 53436

THE PYROLYSIS APPARATUS according to DIN 53436 [1,2,3] is regarded as one of the methods that substantially meet the main requirements of toxicologists [4]. According to this dynamic method the material to be tested is heated in the airstream. The conditions provided by the apparatus are such that a &dquo;quasi-stationary&dquo; smoke stream is produced. Both the composition and the concentration of the smoke stream are approximately constant during the exposure.

Risk Oriented Evaluation of Fire Gas Toxicity Based on Laboratory Scale Experiments- The DIN 53436 Method

Small scale laboratory tests are described which show that the DIN 53436 method is applicable to studying smouldering processes as well as flaming fires with respect to fire atmospheres generated. This is shown by the temperature build up and the concentration of CO2 and CO versus time. In order to obtain a uniform combustion with fast burning samples too a modified protocol was developed.

Toxicity of the Combustion Gases from Plastics: Relevance and Limitations of Results Obtained in Animal Experiments

WITH THE ADVENT of the single European market, current attempts to harmonize fire safety legislation as a basic principle have elevated the problem of testing and evaluating effluents’ toxicity to the status of a high-profile issue. Directives on building products [1] and furniture [2], together with the CEN’s’ activities in the rail traffic field [3], have led to renewed discussion of the basic principles. Since there is no generally accepted guidance of testing, different national requirementslike, for example, the French Nitrogen-Chlorine Act [4]-tend to be based on the lessons learned from individual fire disasters [5], with the result that there is at present no basis for standardized legislation.

Evaluation of Fires by Establishing the Characteristics of Smoke Fumes

&dquo;EVERY FIRE IS different.&dquo; The fire brigades are quite justified in using this cliche as it indicates quite clearly how difficult it is to define the course of a fire and classify it with the aid of laboratory models. The fact that fire behaviour is not a material property alone but depends on both material and environmental factors highlights the problem faced when trying to predict the fire characteristics (including the resulting smoke production) of materials and, in particular, of composites, i.e., materials combined in accordance with regulations. Ease of ignition, flame spread and heat generation inclusive of secondary effects such as the smoke generation can vary considerably at different stages of a fire.

Corrosive Effects of Smoke: Decomposition with the DIN Tube According to DIN 53436

IN FORMER TIMES little attention was paid to the corrosive behaviour of smoke. About thirty years ago, however, this behaviour began to be investigated systematically and discussed in the literature. The study of corrosiveness would appear to be particularly important in connection with sensitive electronic equipment, whose replacement cost after a fire, or merely the losses caused by the equipment’s being out of service, are possibly greater than the losses represented by damage to the building in which the equipment is housed [1-5]. Restoring the structural elements of a fire-damaged building has recently become increasingly costly, because, as a consequence of the general increase in air pollution, concrete and steel, for example, are now in any case exposed to severer conditions than in the past. In addition, modern calculation methods and building techniques are produc-

RISK-ORIENTED TESTING AND ASSESSMENT OF SMOKE DENSITY

The problem involved in determining smoke density data are described, inter alia, in the relevant national and international test methods. An attempt is made to illustrate general conditions for risk-related, applica tion-oriented testing and assessment based on the possible obstruction of rescue work in the event of a fire occurring. The informativeness of such smoke measurements is explained. The influence of superficial fire propagation must also be taken into account in the interpretation of both static and dynamic methods. A static method such as the ISO smoke box method makes it possible, for example, to assess the effectiveness of screening facings and thus of the amount of time available for rescue operations before the exposed building product contributes towards the smoke generated per unit area.

The United Kingdom Upholstered Furniture Fire Safety Regulations 1988-A Challenge to Fibres

it is important to examine other lessons that can be learned from such disasters. An examination of the available data may establish the contribution of the materials used in the construction to establish their true role in the overall fire performance of the structure. Those involved in regulation or control should be aware that fire performance is not a material property. A detailed study of the above disasters suggests that:

Development of a Safety Concept for Assessment of the Toxicity of Combustion Products

A safety concept to evaluate the acute toxicity data of fire effluents for assess ing the toxic hazards in real fire is described. It is demonstrated that wrong conclusion will be the outcome if any laboratory toxicity data are used as direct pass-fail criteria. Analytically determined concentration data of major com ponents are useful for the interpretation of bioassay data, mathematical model ling as well as quality control.