|
|
|
FF88® overview
FF88 is a water-based, intumescent coating that can withstand
extreme temperatures (in excess of 2000F degrees) for an extended time (over
two hours).
Firefree 88 is the first coating to provide fire retardance and resistance to a wide variety
of materials including sheetrock, wood, lath and plaster, concrete, sheet metal,
tin, foam, foam composite panels as well as advanced materials such as fiberglass
and carbon fiber.
As a result, FF88 can provide a high level of fire protection to many industries
such as construction, insulation and transportation (land, air, sea).
FF88 is unique because of its unmatched level of performance
both as a fire retardant (prevents flame spread/flashover) and as a fire resistant
(resists fire penetration).
As a result of its high performance in limiting flame spread and fire penetration,
FF88 has the proven ability to help fire containment by slowing both (i) the occurrence
of flashovers and (ii) the fire from penetrating walls and ceilings, thus resulting
in saving lives and preserving the structural integrity of the property.
FF88 is fully tested and proven. It is the first and only
coating to pass the Fire Industry's most stringent tests for both fire retardancy
and fire resistance. As a fire retardant, FF88 is the first coating to
pass the industry's most severe tests (UBC 26-3 / UBC 8-2 room corner tests)
for a wide variety of materials, showing the ability to prevent vertical flame
spread/flashover. As a fire resistant coating, FF88 has also passed the industry's
most stringent test (ASTM E-119) showing the ability to prevent fire penetration
for up to two hours on a wide variety of materials.
FF88 has been approved by Factory Mutual (FM Global) and tested at ICC-ES certified fire testing laboratories. See also Fire Safety below.
FF88 is non-toxic, environmentally friendly and applies
as easily as paint. Because of its ease of application and minimal inconvenience
to occupants, Firefree 88 is a very cost effective method to provide fire proofing,
often resulting in 40% to 60% savings compared to traditional methods, which
often require massive amounts of material and labor as well as extensive disruption
to occupants.
Why is FF88 so unique?
FF88's performance is truly unique because of its high level
of performance both as a fire retardant and as a fire resistant.
FF88 is the first and only coating to pass the Fire Industry's tests for both
fire retardants and fire resistants. As a result, FF88 has the proven ability
to help fire containment by slowing both (i) the occurrence of flashovers and (ii)
the fire from penetrating walls and ceilings, thus resulting in saving lives
and preserving the structural integrity of the property.
FF88 has passed the Fire Industry's most stringent tests
for fire retardants.
The first generation of fire coatings ("fire retardants") were based
on the now obsolete concept that fires spread mainly horizontally. Thus, these
coatings were designed to slow the horizontal progress of a fire (providing
little fireproofing) and were only required to pass the simple ASTM E 84 test
which measures horizontal flame spread, mostly on low or non-combustible materials
such as cement board.
As the industry's understanding of fire grew, it became apparent that the greatest
spread from a fire comes from vertical flame spread. As the initial materials
burn, the flames will travel vertically and gases will collect at the ceiling.
These gases will soon ignite causing flashover, a fireball explosion that will
burst into other parts of the structure. FF88 is the first coating to have passed
the most stringent fire retardant tests for vertical flame spread/flashover(UBC
26-3 / UBC 8-2 room corner tests)
and the FM 4975 ceiling test on a wide variety of materials.
FF88 has passed the Fire Industry's most stringent tests
for fire resistants. Another key factor in flame spread is fire penetration
of the walls or ceilings. As the initial source materials burn, the fire will
begin to penetrate the walls and ceilings leading to their rapid deterioration
and a resulting spread of the flames to adjoining rooms. Additionally, the penetration
of the fire in the walls and ceilings will lead to their contributing to the
fire by becoming additonal fuel to the initial fire. FF88 is the first
coating to have passed the most stringent fire test, the ASTM E 119 which measures
resistance to fire penetration for a wide variety of materials.
FF88 performance/specifications
Can withstand extreme temperatures. In extensive
third party testing at ICC-ES certified laboratories,
including Western Fire Center, Omega, Southwest, U.L., Warnock Hersey and the
University of California Forest Products Lab, FF88, an intumescent coating, has
been shown to withstand
temperatures of over 2000F for a period of over 2 hours. By comparison, an average
fire will burn at about 1000F to 1500F (it is estimated that the WTC burned at
around 2000F for about 45 minutes).
FF88 has been approved by Factory Mutual (FM Global) and tested at ICC-ES certified fire testing laboratories.
Contains the fire to its room of origin. By protecting
the walls and ceilings and preventing them from contributing to the fire, FF88
will limit the amount of combustible materials available for flashover. This
will prevent the fire from spreading or, at a minimum, slow it down thus giving
time
for
people to escape and firemen to arrive and safely save the property. In some
cases, the fire might just burn out after exhausting the initial combustible
materials.
Limits smoke propagation. The production of smoke
in a fire is often more lethal than the fire itself. Simulations and tests have
proven that using FF88 will limit the combustibility of the room and thus dramatically
reduce the smoke generated, allowing extra minutes to escape.
Preserves structural integrity. Since FF88 can help fire containment to the room of origin and slow fire penetration of the walls and
ceiling, the potential fire damage to the studs
and ceiling joists in a structure is dramatically reduced, preventing structural
collapse while allowing firefighters the extra safety to fight the fire from
the
inside.
Easy and cost efficient to apply. A brush, roller
or sprayer can be used to apply Firefree 88. Being a water-based latex, no special
equipment is required, minimum time is needed for clean up (just use water)
and FF88 can be tinted any color. FF88 can be applied over most existing paint;
new
paint or wallpaper can be applied over FF88.
Non-toxic; environmentally safe. FF88 has no
toxic fumes, little or no
odor and has passed the stringent requirements for solvents and emissions by
the State of California for 2008.
What does FF88 do and how does
it work?
From the numerous room and house burns performed by Firefree Systems over the
last several years, the company has shown that, depending on the dry mil thickness
applied to entire walls and ceilings of rooms, it can resist a fire in excess
of 2000F for over 2 hours and thus help fire containment to the room of origin. The reason
is that FF88’s fire resistance abilities will prevent both the fire from
penetrating walls and ceilings and the occurrence of flashovers.
As shown by passing the ASTM E-119 tests, FF88 is fire resistant and when applied to a substrate, it will prevent the fire from penetrating the walls and ceilings made of such substrate. Without FF88, as the initial materials burn, the fire will start penetrating the walls and ceilings, leading to their rapid deterioration and a resulting spread of the flames in adjoining rooms. Additionally, the penetration of the fire in the walls and ceilings will lead to their contributing to the fire itself, by becoming fuel to the initial flames. With FF88, the walls and ceilings will resist fire penetration and, as a result, they will not allow the spread to other rooms and they will not become fuel to the flames.
As shown by passing the UBC 26-3 /UBC 8-2 corner tests, FF88 has the ability to prevent vertical flame spread and flashover. Without FF88, the initial flames will be fueled by the walls and ceilings and such flames will travel vertically with gases collecting at the ceiling. These gases will soon ignite causing flashover, a fireball explosion that will burst into other parts of the structure. With FF88, the walls and ceilings will not contribute to the fire which will dramatically reduce the fuel load in a room, creating less heat and, in most cases, preventing flashover. The only items that can become fuel are the objects within the room itself. This concept of preventing flashover is documented in the numerous room corner tests that we have performed on a variety of substrates.
By creating this type of compartmentalization, we can dramatically alter the time/temperature curve in a room. In most situations, the walls and ceiling will become fuel and contribute to the fire. As a result, the time/temperature curve will continue to rise, gases will buildup at the ceiling and at around 750F (room flashover temperature) these gases will ignite. Once ignited, the room will erupt in a ball of flame (flashover) with the fire quickly spreading throughout the structure. The whole process takes a mere 7 to 10 minutes from the start of the fire. In a situation where the walls and ceilings are coated with FF88, just the opposite will occur, the walls and ceilings will not contribute to the fire, significantly altering the time/temperature curve. The curve instead of going up and climbing steadily will instead reach a peak in a matter of minutes, below flashover conditions, and will quickly start dropping off. No large amounts of gases will collect at the ceiling and flashover will be prevented.
Fire Safety
For various reasons, including (i) the very different circumstances that may exist from one fire to another, (ii) the differences between conditions in an actual fire and laboratory conditions in which testing is conducted, and (iii) the inherent variability of fire tests, passing a laboratory test or certifying/labeling Firefree88 for use in specific assemblies/systems, does not mean that the same application of FF88 will necessarily provide equivalent protection of the same result in an actual fire or in a new laboratory test. Furthermore, FF88 is to be used only as a component of complete fire retardation systems. It will only contribute to slowing fire spread for the area where it has been applied and will not, by itself, prevent a fire from starting or continuing. The amount by which FF88 retards a particular fire will depend, among other things, on (i) the amount of FF88 applied, (ii) the conditions of the other elements of the assembly incorporating FF88, and (iii) the conditions of the actual fire itself. FF88 will not make a fire any less dangerous to persons or property. IFRS cannot guarantee that loss or injury will not be suffered by persons or property as a result of a fire. It is the sole responsibility of the applicator to ensure that FF88 has been applied in accordance with the application directions. It is the responsibility of the occupier to ensure the paint is not cracked, chipped or peeling.
|
|
