pinfa presented flame retardants, why they are used and how they work, at the Nordic Fires Safety Days, Lund, 18-19th June.
This event brought together over 140 fire safety researchers, firefighters, industry and stakeholders, mainly from Nordic countries, with over 70 presentations.
Opening talks by Jakob Andersen, Copenhagen Fire Services, Aldis Larusdottir, Reykjavik Fire Services, and Ann Christin Rognmo Olsen, Norway Fire Services, outlined the challenges today facing fire services: increasing complexity of new buildings, new materials, new energy systems, electrification and batteries, in combination with an ageing population (which makes escape and rescue more difficult) and demands for major incidents and wildfires. At the same time, funding is under pressure. Social aspects are emphasised as important, such as illegal and inappropriate use of business or warehouse properties as rental residencies.
Two sessions addressed fire safety challenges posed by photovoltaic panels in buildings and by batteries, in particular battery energy storage systems (BESS), both domestic scale and commercial / grid storage. Battery systems can be a cause of fire or explosion in case of battery thermal runaway (caused by battery failure or electrical faults), with very rapid fire growth and strong risk of fire spread if the battery storage is within a building. Fire tests of photovoltaic panels show that they can contribute to fires, but are often self-extinguishing (pinfa comment: components, in particular the polymers in which the PV elements are embedded and the polymer back plate are generally flame retarded). Installation should ensure a barrier to prevent fire spread to building materials. Tests show that PV panels installed in walls may release falling debris in case of fire but that their fire resistance is otherwise better than pine cladding.
Challenges for new energy systems and batteries are the need for information, training and on-site signage for firefighters, lack of coherent fire safety regulations and rapid ongoing developments in technologies. Specific challenges are posed by batteries in marine transport, both in cargo and in transported vehicles. A developing fire safety challenge is installation of second-life batteries in houses or other premises, escaping regulatory surveillance.
Several presentations addressed PIN flame retardant applications, including intumescents used to protect steel and other construction materials from heat and fire. Johannes Rex, Lund University, presented cone calorimeter tests of smoke emissions from untreated and PIN flame retardant (ammonium polyphosphate) wood façade materials. The PIN FR-treated wood showed 77 – 92 % lower smoke emissions despite similar mass loss. Further results are pending, including analysis of smoke toxicity.
Questions raised by participants included the durability of fire safety as materials age in buildings, and the lack of data, testing and regulation of such ageing. pinfa studies on materials recycling suggests that PIN FRs are generally durable, with deterioration with ageing impacting mainly the polymer itself (see pinfa Newsletter n°109).
Ellen Synnøve Skilbred, RISE Fire Research, presented analysis of fatal fires in Norway, 2015 – 2020. Nearly 40% of fatal fires were identified as starting in the living room. For around 40% the identified cause was smoking or an open flame. Around 32 % of the deceased were under the influence of alcohol and 21% were under the influence of drugs. Elderly people were overrepresented in the fatal fire statistics. The full report from the project will be published in the autumn of 2024 at https://risefr.com/publications
Mikael Jonsson and Antti Viitanen, Recticel, presented full-scale tests of flat roof insulation, placed underneath 6 m2 of sloping solar panels. Flame retardant PIR foam (polyisocyanurate), 14.2 cm thickness, was compared to mineral wool with the same insulation rating (Comparative fire tests of insulated flat roofs with photovoltaic installations youtube.com). The PIR self-extinguished after about half an hour, showing charring to only 25% of its thickness, whereas the temperature in the mineral wool continued to rise for four hours after the test. The behaviour of the FR PIR foam proved to be not worse in the actual application compared to the mineral wool insulation. At the Recticel stand a brochure in Swedish (PIR myter | Recticel Insulation) “dispels three myths” about PIR, addressing fire safety, cost and environmental impact. Flame retarded PIR does not melt in fire, but chars, so does not release droplets. It can achieve Euroclass B-s1,d0 Reaction to fire classification in an end-use configuration with steeldeck.
pinfa (Chris Thornton) presented benefits and risks of PIN flame retardant use: how they contribute to fire safety and how PIN flame retardants and PIN smoke suppressants can reduce smoke emissions and smoke toxicity, and discussed with participants what research is needed to provide evidence of benefits. pinfa’s slides are available on the pinfa website here.
Conference conclusions presented by Anne Dederichs, RiSE Sweden, underlined the increasing complexity of fire safety, the new fire safety challenges of batteries, electrification, green energies and building renovation and the need to ensure durable fire safety (resistance to ageing) and fire safety of bio-based materials. The Nordic Fire Safety Network contributes through education, knowledge sharing and joint projects.
Nordic Fire Safety Days 2024 (NFSD) https://www.ri.se/en/nfsd
Book of abstracts https://ri.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1869356/FULLTEXT04.pdf
Nordic Fires Safety Network regular webinars https://www.nfsn.dk/ & https://www.nfsn.dk/events
Pinfa presentation at NFSD 2024 https://www.pinfa.eu/media-events/presentations
The next Nordic Fire Safety Days will take place in 2026.