Part of a series on Wildland Firefighting
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Wildfire  · Bushfire Wildland fire suppression
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Incident Command System Hotshots Controlled burn Firebreak  · Fire trail Fire lookout tower Fire retardant  · MAFFS Helicopter bucket  · Driptorch
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Aerial firefighting Helitack  · Smokejumper
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List of wildfires Glossary of wildland fire terms This box: view • talk • edit

A fire retardant is a substance that helps to delay or prevent combustion. A wildfire, also known as a wildland fire, forest fire, brush fire, vegetation fire, grass fire, Peat fire, Ladysmith-RFSJPG|right|thumb| Ladysmith NSW RFS fire fighting tanker]]A Bushfire is a Fire that occurs in the bush (collective term for Wildland fire suppression refers to the firefighting tactics used to suppress wildfires The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC in Boise, Idaho, is the physical facility that is home to the National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC The Bureau of Land Management (BLM is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's Public lands totaling approximately The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF or CAL FIRE is the State of California's agency responsible for the administration of the state's private The CDF Aviation Management Program is a branch of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF The New South Wales Rural Fire Service (RFS is a volunteer-based firefighting agency and statutory body of the NSW Government History CFA operates under the Country Fire Authority Act of 1958 its amendments and Regulations About the CFS The Country Fire Service (CFS is the volunteer combatant authority for Firefighting, road crash and hazardous materials in the country The Incident Command System (ICS is a standardized on-scene all-hazard incident management concept in the United States. A Hotshot Crew, or Hotshots as they are more sometimes known is a group of wildland firefighters. A firebreak (also called a fireroad, fire line or fuel break) is a gap in Vegetation or other combustible material that acts as a barrier to A fire trail is a rural road built specifically for the purpose of access for "fire management purposes" A fire lookout tower, fire tower or lookout tower, provides housing and protection for a person known as a " Fire lookout " whose duty it The Modular Airborne FireFighting System or MAFFS is a self-contained unit used for Aerial firefighting that can be loaded onto a military cargo transport typically A helicopter bucket is a specialised bucket suspended on a cable carried by a Helicopter to deliver water for Aerial firefighting. A driptorch is a tool used in wildland firefighting, controlled burning, and other Forestry applications to intentionally ignite fires Aerial firefighting is a method to combat Wildfires using aircraft Helitack refers to "helicopter-delivered fire resources" and is the system of managing and using Helicopters and their crews to perform Aerial firefighting A smokejumper is a Wildland firefighter that Parachutes into a remote area to combat Wildfires Smokejumpers are most often deployed to fires This is a list of notorious Wildfires: North America In Australia Black Friday Bushfires of 1939 ( South The following is a glossary of wildland fire terms. Except where noted terms are taken from a 1998 Fireline Handbook transcribed for a Conflict 21 Counter-terrorism Combustion or burning is a complex sequence of Exothermic chemical reactions between a Fuel and an Oxidant accompanied by the production of Fire retardants are commonly used in fire fighting. Distinguish from a Firefight, which means a battle with firearms Water is the most commonly used fire retardant, but the phrase typically refers to chemical retardants. It can also refer to a coating over an object, such as a spray retardant to prevent Christmas trees from burning.

Home fires damage about 400,000 homes, and cause just under 7 billion US dollars in direct damage annually in the United States. ^[1] Because of the importance of prevention, fire retardation has become a very important industry.

How retardants work

In general, fire retardants reduce the flammability of materials by either blocking the fire physically or by initiating a chemical reaction that stops the fire.

Physical

There are several ways in which the combustion process can be retarded by physical action:

• By heating: Some chemical reactions actually heat the material down.
• By forming a protective layer: This protects the remaining material.
• By dilution: Some retardants release water and/or carbon dioxide while burning. Carbon dioxide ( Chemical formula:) is a Chemical compound composed of two Oxygen Atoms covalently bonded to a single This may dilute the radicals in the flame enough for it to go out.

One example commonly used is the fire retardant, aluminium hydroxide. Aluminium hydroxide, Al(OH3 is the most stable form of Aluminium in normal conditions Not only does it break down to give off water vapor, but it also absorbs a vast amount of heat as it does so, cooling the material, and the residue of alumina (Al2O3) forms a protective layer. It provides protection in three ways at once.

Chemical action

• Reactions in the gas phase: chemical reactions in the flame (i. e. gas phase) can be interrupted by fire retardants. However, there are situations where the released gas might be more dangerous when this type of retardant is involved. Generally, this class of retardents uses halogens such as bromine or chlorine. Abundance Owing to their high Reactivity, the halogens are found in the environment only in compounds or as Ions Halide ions and oxoanions Chlorine (ˈklɔriːn from the Greek word 'χλωρóς' ( khlôros, meaning 'pale green' is the Chemical element with Atomic number 17 and

• Reaction in the solid phase: This kind of flame retardant works by breaking down the plastics polymer so it melts and flows away from the flame. Flame retardants are materials that inhibit or resist the spread of Fire. Although this allows materials to pass certain flammability tests, there is argument over if the fire safety is truly improved by the production of flammable plastic droplets. Plastic is the general common term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic organic solid materials suitable for the manufacture of industrial products

• Char Formation: Solid phase flame retardants are those which cause a layer of carbon char to form on the polymer surface. This carbon char layer is much harder to burn and prevents further burning.

• Intumescents: These types of retardant materials add chemicals which cause swelling up behind the protective char layer, providing much better insulation behind the protective barrier. The term thermal insulation can refer to materials used to reduce the rate of Heat transfer, or the methods and processes used to reduce heat transfer In additions to being added to plastics, these are available as paints for protecting wooden buildings or steel structures.

Uses

A Fire extinguisher

Fire extinguishers

Class A foam is used as a fire retardant in 2. 5 gallon APW and CAFS extinguishers to contain incipient brush fires and grass fires by creating a fire break. Other chemical retardants such as FireAde and Arctic Fire are capable of rendering class A material and Class B fuels non-flammable and extinguishing class A,B, and some D fires. Arctic Fire-Freeze (also known as "AFF" double F is a brand of liquid fire extinguishing agent that emulsifies flammable liquids and cools super heated materials quicker (Fire retardant,such as the slurry dropped from aircraft, is used to prevent ignition while fire suppression agents are used to extinguish fires. )

Surface coating

It is possible to coat an object with a fire retardant. The classic example of this is the green Christmas tree. As a tree dries out it can be accidentally lit on fire putting the home at risk. A coating of a specialised fire retardant can prevent the starting of the fire and slow it down if it does start.

In addition many large sky-scrapers use a coating around main structural elements to prevent catastrophic weakening during a fire. It is believed that one of the reasons why the twin towers collapsed on 9/11 was due to the airplane impact removing portions of the fire-insulation layer.

Many Dormitories across the nation are also considering using these products. Since 2000, 109 people have died in fires in dormitories or off-campus student housing across the nation, according to Campus Firewatch, an online newsletter.

Campus Firewatch's publisher, Ed Comeau, said a January 2000 fire at Seton Hall University in New Jersey drew attention to the perils of fire on campus. A common area in a Seton Hall dorm caught fire after two students ignited a banner from a bulletin board. The fire quickly spread to furniture and killed three students and injured 58 others. ^[2]

Forest-fire fighting

A MAFFS-equipped Air National Guard C-130 Hercules drops fire retardant on wildfires in Southern California

Red-dyed line of fire retardant stands out clearly on this Arizona hill. The Modular Airborne FireFighting System or MAFFS is a self-contained unit used for Aerial firefighting that can be loaded onto a military cargo transport typically The Air National Guard ( ANG), often referred to as the Air Guard, is the air force militia organized by each of the several states and WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Drop was against the Alambre Fire.

One way that a chemical fire retardant would be used is at a wildfire to try and prevent its spread. A wildfire, also known as a wildland fire, forest fire, brush fire, vegetation fire, grass fire, Peat fire, A fire retardant would not actually be put directly on the fire in an attempt to extinguish it. Generally, fire retardant is dropped around a fire's edges to contain it, allowing crews time to work to put the fire out while the retardant slowed or prevented further spread. However, when needed, retardant can also be dropped directly onto flames when needed to cool the fire and reduce flame length. ^[3]

In a forest or wild fire situation in a remote area, a fire retardant would usually be dropped from a plane or helicopter. History Since 400 AD Chinese children have played with bamboo flying toys. For example, it would be used on fires up on mountains where there is limited or no ground access. Fire retardants that are used are considered to be non-toxic. Toxicity is the degree to which a substance is able to damage an exposed organism However there is little data on the long-terms effects of fire retardant to people or the environment. One of the most-used commercial retardants is Phos-Chek. Phos-Chek is the brand name of a Flame retardant used to fight Wildfires Phos-Chek is manufactured in either a powder or concentrated liquid form

Textiles

Most clothing intended for children in the United States is required to pass fire-retardant tests for safety reasons.

Home furniture

In many locations mattresses are now treated with fire retardant or built with fire-resistant material. Many new foams self-extinguish. This is the most common use of fire retardancy in the chemical means.

Materials

Wildfire retardants

Fire retardants applied to wildfires is usually a mixture of water and chemicals designed to wet the area as well as chemically retard fire progression through vegetation. A wildfire, also known as a wildland fire, forest fire, brush fire, vegetation fire, grass fire, Peat fire, Typically it is dyed red so that the application area can be seen from the air. New gel-based retardants which meet NFPA Standard 1150 are being introduced into use. These are dyed other colors to differentiate them from the traditional red retardant. The gels and their dyes are designed to biodegrade naturally. ^[4]

See also

• List of fire-retardant materials
• Flame retardant
• Aerial firefighting
• Wildland fire suppression
• Modular Airborne FireFighting System

References

External links

• National Fire Protection Association
• Defense Fire Protection Association