A fire-resistance rating typically means the duration for which a passive fire protection system can withstand a standard fire resistance test. Passive fire protection (PFP is an integral component of the three components of structural Fire protection and fire safety in a Building. System (from Latin systēma, in turn from Greek systēma is a set of interacting or interdependent Entities, real or abstract A fire test is a means of determining whether or not Fire protection products meet minimum performance criteria as set out in a Building code or other applicable legislation This can be quantified simply as a measure of time, or it may entail a host of other criteria, involving other evidence of functionality or fitness for purpose.
The following depict the most commonly used international time/temperature curves:
 Time/Temperature Curves used for testing the fire-resistance rating of passive fire protection systems such as firestops, fire doors, wall and floor assemblies, etc. For other uses see Time (disambiguation Time is a component of a measuring system used to sequence events to compare the durations of Temperature is a physical property of a system that underlies the common notions of hot and cold something that is hotter generally has the greater temperature Passive fire protection (PFP is an integral component of the three components of structural Fire protection and fire safety in a Building. System (from Latin systēma, in turn from Greek systēma is a set of interacting or interdependent Entities, real or abstract A firestop is a Passive fire protection System of various components used to seal openings and joints in fire-resistance rated wall A fire door is a type of Door, or barrier used as a Passive fire protection item within Buildings to prevent the spread of Fire or , which are used in compartmentalisation in buildings and the petrochemical industry in Europe and North America. In structures such as land-based Buildings traffic Tunnels Ships aerospace vehicles, or Submarines compartmentalization is the fundamental In Architecture, Construction, Engineering and real estate development the word building may refer to one of the following Any man-made Petrochemicals are chemical products made from raw materials of Petroleum or other Hydrocarbon origin |
 Time/Temperature Curves used for testing the fire-resistance rating of passive fire protection systems in tunnels in Germany, The Netherlands and France. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. |
 Time/Temperature Curve used for testing the fire-resistance rating of passive fire protection system|systems in tunnels in The Netherlands. |
 Time/Temperature Curve used for testing the fire-resistance rating of passive fire protection systems in Europe. |
 Time/Temperature Curve used for testing the fire-resistance rating of passive fire protection systems in tunnels in France. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. |
 Time/Temperature Curve used for testing the fire-resistance rating of passive fire protection systems in tunnels in Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. |
 Furnace pressure is also subject to standardised tolerances for testing to obtain fire-resistance ratings. Pressure (symbol 'p' is the force per unit Area applied to an object in a direction perpendicular to the surface This image shows European tolerances, subject to NEN-EN 1363-1. |
 Furnace Temperatures for fire testing to obtain fire-resistance ratings are subject to certain tolerances. This graph shows the tolerance applicable to the European building elements / cellulosic curve. |
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International fire-resistance ratings
For instance, in Germany, a fire door may have a "T90" designation, which means that the door has documented evidence of its ability to withstand that country's fire door test regime for a duration of 90 minutes. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. A fire door is a type of Door, or barrier used as a Passive fire protection item within Buildings to prevent the spread of Fire or A door is a panel or barrier usually hinged or sliding that is used to cover an opening in a Wall or partition going into a building or space
There are many international variations for nearly countless types of products and systems, some with multiple test requirements.
Canada's Institute for Research in Construction (a part of the National Research Council and publisher of Canada's model building code - NBC) requires a special test regime for firestops for plastic pipe penetrants. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Plastic is the general common term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic organic solid materials suitable for the manufacture of industrial products Fire endurance tests for this application must be run under 50Pa positive furnace pressure in order to adequately simulate the effect of potential temperature differences between indoor and outdoor temperatures in Canada's winters. Special hoods are applied here to provide suction on the top side of a test assembly in order to reach the 50Pa pressure differential. Afterwards, a 30PSI hose-stream test may be applied.
Some fire doors in the NAFTA area may even open up somewhat during a fire endurance test, although not too far, while a wall or floor assembly proper may not even be allowed an average temperature rise above 140°C or single point increases over 180°C.
Outdoor spray fireproofing methods that must be qualified to the hydrocarbon curve may be required to pass a host of environmental tests before any burn takes place, to minimise the likelihood that ordinary operational environments cannot render a vital system component useless before it ever encounters a fire. "Fireproof" redirects here For the album see Fireproof (album. In Organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an Organic compound consisting entirely of Hydrogen and Carbon. Fire is the heat and light energy released during a Chemical reaction, in particular a combustion reaction.
If critical environmental conditions are not satisfied, an assembly may not be eligible for a fire-resistance rating.
Regardless of the complexity of any given test regime that may lead to a rating, the premise is generally product certification and, most importantly listing and approval use and compliance. Product certification or product qualification is the process of certifying that a certain product has passed performance and Quality assurance tests or qualification Listing and approval use and compliance is the activity of adhering to all the requirements of installing and/or using safety-related products and items in conformance with an active Testing without certification and installations that cannot be matched with an appropriate certification listing, are not usually recognised by any Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) unless it is in a realm where product certification is optional. A Certification listing is a document against which a field installation is compared to make sure that it complies with a regulation such as a Building code. In the fields of Architecture and Civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the Building or assembling of Infrastructure Product certification or product qualification is the process of certifying that a certain product has passed performance and Quality assurance tests or qualification
Tests for Fire Resistance of Record Protection Equipment
The following classifications may be attained when testing in accordance with UL 72.
Class 125 Rating
This rating is the requirement in data safes and vault structures for protecting digital information on magnetic media or hard drives. Temperatures inside the protected chamber must be held below 125°F (51. Fahrenheit is a temperature scale named after Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686–1736 a German Physicist who proposed it in 1724 7°C) for the time period specified, such as Class 125-2 Hour, with temperatures up to 2,000°F (1,093. The Celsius Temperature scale was previously known as the centigrade scale. 3°C) outside the vault. The temperature reading is taken on the inside surfaces of the protective structure. Maintaining the temperature below 125°F. is critical because data is lost above that temperature threshold, even if the media or hard drives appear to be intact.
Class 150 Rating
This is the rating required to protect microfilm, microfiche, and other film-based information storage media. Above 150°F (65. 5°C) film is distorted by the heat and information is lost. A Class 150-2 Hour vault must keep the temperature below 150°F. for at least two hours, with temperatures up to 2,000°F. (1,093. 3°C) outside the vault.
Class 350 Rating
This rating is the requirement for protecting paper documents. Above 350°F (176. 7°C) paper is distorted by the heat and information is lost. A Class 350-4 Hour vault must keep the temperature below 350°F. for at least four hours, with temperatures up to 2,000°F. (1,093. 3°C) outside the vault.
Different time/temperature curves
Typically, most countries use the building elements curve, which is nearly identical in most countries as that is what results by burning wood. Wood is hard fibrous lignified structural tissue produced as secondary Xylem in the stems of Woody plants notably trees but also shrubs The building elements curve is characterised jointly by, including, but not limited to, DIN4102, BS476, ASTM E119, ULC-S101, etc. For exterior systems used in the petrochemical industry, the hydrocarbon curve is used. The only exposure beyond this, apart from the more recent tunnel curves shown above, would be the British "jetfire" exposure, which is not commonly used.
Big differences between different countries in terms of the use of the curves include the use of pipes, which shield the furnace thermocouples inside of NAFTA testing laboratories. This slows down the response time and results in a somewhat more conservative test regime in North America. On the other hand, the ISO based European curves run somewhat hotter for most of the test. North America also selectively uses a hose-stream test between 30 and 45PSI, to simulate real-world impacts and damages that may not be simulated in a laboratory. The US Navy even insists on a 90PSI hose-stream test for some of its assemblies, which may simulate the pressure available to firefighters in fighting a fire, but which has little to do with countermeasures against damaging effects of manual fire suppression. The hose-stream is simply intended to add a level of toughness to matters because without this, some fairly flimsy systems can pass a test, thus receive a rating and thus be permissible by a building code but be so weak that ordinary building use may damage a thus qualified system before it encounters a fire. A building code, or building control, is a set of rules that specify the minimum acceptable level of safety for constructed objects such as Buildings and Nonbuilding See firestop.org treatise on the hose stream test.
Germany's DIN4102 also includes a significant impact test for a potential firewall (construction), which is, however, applied from the wrong side: the cold side. In Construction, a firewall is a fire-resistance rated Wall assembly intended to slow the Applying the impact from the cold side is more practical to do in a lab setting, however, potential impacts should come from the exposed side, not the unexposed side. Still, for the person designing, building and paying for the test, the fire resistance itself may be rather uneventful unless major problems appear. The burn itself is the long duration, up to 4 hours, but the hose stream test only lasts a few minutes, with large damage potential due to the sudden thermal and kinetic impacts, as the fire was upwards of 1,100°C (see curves above), whereas the sudden hose-stream test is as cold as the domestic water fed to the fire hose used in the test, which might be 10-20°C. This combined impact explains the debris that can be seen coming from test specimens during the hose stream test, as seen herein.
Because of the large differences in test regimes all over the world, even for identical products and systems, organisations that intend to market their products internationally are often required to run many tests in many countries. Even where test regimes are identical, countries are often reluctant to accept the test results and particularly the certification methods of other countries.
During a fire in a tunnel, as well as in the petrochemical industry, temperatures exceed those of ordinary building (cellulosic) fires. A tunnel is an underground passageway The definition of what constitutes a tunnel is not universally agreed upon This is because the fuel for the fire is hydrocarbons, which burn hotter (compare hydrocarbon curve above to ASTM E119 curve), faster and typically run out of fuel faster as well, compared against timber. In Organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an Organic compound consisting entirely of Hydrogen and Carbon. The added complication with tunnels is that the environment inside a "tube" is best described as a "microclimate". The heat cannot escape as well as it can in a burning refinery, which is in the open. Instead, the fire is confined to a narrow tube, where pressure and heat build up and spread rapidly, with little room for escape and little chance of compartmentalization. This scenario was amply tested and quantified, particularly during the "Eureka Project", run by Technische Universität Braunschweig's iBMB, Dr. Ekkehard Richter, which has profoundly affected tunnel regulations in the Nations that took part in the project. The Netherlands, through Rijkswaterstaat in particular, mandated an extremely tough standard, the curve of which is shown in the gallery above. Rijkswaterstaat, founded in 1798 as the Bureau voor den Waterstaat, is part of the Dutch Ministry of Transportation and Water Management that is delegated
Example of a test leading to a fire-resistance rating
The following is a series of pictures depicting a typical fire test, in this case for a firestop, which led to an active fire-resistance rating, backed up by active product certification. Product certification or product qualification is the process of certifying that a certain product has passed performance and Quality assurance tests or qualification A copy of the resulting certification listing can be seen under the certification listing article. A Certification listing is a document against which a field installation is compared to make sure that it complies with a regulation such as a Building code. A Certification listing is a document against which a field installation is compared to make sure that it complies with a regulation such as a Building code.
Picture 1
Construction of a test sample, consisting of a mock-up concrete floor frame, complete with penetrants. Concrete is a construction material composed of Cement (commonly Portland cement) as well as other cementitious materials such as Fly ash and Slag The concrete frame measures approximately 5’ x 9’ x 4“ (ca. 1. 5m x 2. 3m x 10cm). It has a large hole in the centre with many mechanical and electrical services traversing. The penetrants extend 1’ (30cm) into the furnace and 3’ (91cm) on the unexposed side. A firestop mortar is being applied here. Firestop mortars are most typically used to Firestop large openings in walls and floors required to have a Fire-resistance rating. Notice the intumescent wrap strip surrounding the fibreglass pipe insulation. An intumescent is a substance which swells as a result of Heat exposure thus increasing in Volume, and decreasing in Density. When the fire starts, this embedded intumescent will swell to take up the place of the melting insulation. The test was conducted in accordance with the Canadian firestop test method ULC[1]S-115 in Scarborough, Ontario. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page A firestop is a Passive fire protection System of various components used to seal openings and joints in fire-resistance rated wall Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec
Picture 2
The completed test sample is being lifted by crane to the test furnace for the fire resistance test. By contrast, European furnaces can typically allow up to a 1m penetrant depth to reach into the furnaces. North American panel furnaces are not deep enough to accommodate this more realistic exposure.
Picture 3
After the completed test sample has been seated on a ceramic fibre gasket on the top of the furnace, gas is let in through perforated pipes at the bottom of the furnace. The ULC technician is now igniting the gas on each pipe to start the test. Thermocouples are located inside the furnace to make sure the fire resistance test is run in accordance with the prescribed time/temperature curve. Further thermocouples are located on the firestop, 1” or 25mm away from each penetrant and on each penetrant, 1” or 25mm up from the surface of the firestop. A firestop is a Passive fire protection System of various components used to seal openings and joints in fire-resistance rated wall The length of time the test is run and/or however long it takes for fire to penetrate the firestop determines the F-Rating. The length of time required for a penetrant and/or the sample on average to exceed an average heat rise above ambient at the start of the test to exceed 140°C or 180°C at any single location – this determines the duration for the FT Rating (Fire and Temperature). If the hose-stream test is passed afterwards, the rating can then be expressed as an FTH Rating (Fire, Temperature and Hose-stream). The lowest of the three determines the overall rating, though it is possible to have a wide variety of T results, which can vary depending upn how well each such penetrant conducts heat. In Physics, heat, symbolized by Q, is Energy transferred from one body or system to another due to a difference in Temperature
Picture 4
At the conclusion of the fire resistance test, the test sample is lifted off the furnace and readied for a hose-stream test, which is NOT intended to simulate the effects of firefighting. Instead, it is to add a measure of reality of possible impacts, thermal shock and generally the brutal environment of a real fire, which is hard to simulate in pristine laboratory conditions. See this. With combustible penetrants like cables or combustible firestops like silicone foam, it is not entirely unlikely even after two hours of fire to see residual flaming on the exposed side. Silicones are largely inert compounds with a wide variety of forms and uses The most general definition of foam is a substance that is formed by trapping many gas Bubbles in a Liquid or Solid. For an example, see this picture. This was proven during a highly publicised fire test at ULC that encased the silicone foam with noncombustible sheathing in an attempt to justify in-situ installations in US and Canadian nuclear reactor facilities, as per submissions provided to Select Committee on Ontario Hydro Nuclear Affairs by Pickering, Ontario Regional Councillor Maurice Brenner
Picture 5
The duration and pressure of the hose-stream test are a direct function of the length of the test and the size of the test sample. Silicones are largely inert compounds with a wide variety of forms and uses This article is a subarticle of Nuclear power. A nuclear reactor is a device in which Nuclear chain reactions are initiated controlled Pickering is a City located immediately east of Toronto in Durham Region, Ontario, Canada The most typical test pressure is 30PSI, though 45PSI may also be used for fire tests of 4 hours duration or longer.
Picture 6
The test can be considered passed if no fire, water and no excessive heat traversed the sample or penetrants. All results are tabulated and form part of the rating designations, which can be quite complex in the case of busy firestop tests such as this. For instance, an uninsulated copper pipe may have only a 5 minute T Rating, whereas that same pipe insulated with 2” or 50mm of rockwool may achieve a 2 hour T-Rating. Copper (ˈkɒpɚ is a Chemical element with the symbol Cu (cuprum and Atomic number 29 Product certification listings resulting from such successful testing can be used to obtain the approval and acceptance of installed configurations on the part of the Authority Having Jurisdiction on construction sites. Product certification or product qualification is the process of certifying that a certain product has passed performance and Quality assurance tests or qualification In the fields of Architecture and Civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the Building or assembling of Infrastructure In the fields of Architecture and Civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the Building or assembling of Infrastructure Listings are considered public knowledge, whereas the test report itself would be a proprietary item.
Picture 7
Observations from both sides of the test assembly continue on the next day, once the sample has cooled down sufficiently. It is also customary to destroy the test sample, for two reasons: to learn from the effects of the test on the inside of the sample Research and development, as well as for a test laboratory which would issue a certification listing on the basis of the test to ensure that the listing reflects accurately what was installed inside the test assembly, in case and changes occurred that were not previously documented. The phrase research and development (also R and D or more often R&D) according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers A Certification listing is a document against which a field installation is compared to make sure that it complies with a regulation such as a Building code.
See also
External links
- Efectis
- BAM Berlin
- Underwriters Laboratories
- Underwriters' Laboratories of Canada
- Institute for Research in Construction/NRC
- Technische Universität Braunschweig (iBMB TU Braunschweig)
- Gütegemeinschaft Brandschutz im Ausbau
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