Passive Fire Protection
By implementing passive fire protection designs, builders use fire resistant materials in construction of the structure. This leads to the protection of life as well as protecting the building itself. The effect of using passive fire protection products will be to enhance fire safety. Structures and building cconsist of firewalls which ensure that if a part of a building collapses because of a blaze, the rest will remain standing. Some of the products that form an effective passive fire protection system are:
Intumescent coating
An intumescent coating is a passive fire protection specialist paint that chemically reacts when heated in a fire. The coating expands in size to form a char, which protects the steelwork for a specified period of time from the heat of the fire.
Why do you need an intumescent coating?
The purpose of passive fire protection and protecting structural steel is to give the building occupants time to leave the building. Steel is a very strong and versatile building material, but at temperatures of 550ºC it begins to lose its structural integrity.
Fire Resistant Glass
Fire resistant glass is as clear as standard panes of glass, but they are constructed to withstand heat and fire from between 60 and 120 minutes. Fire resistant glass is made by using multi-layer intumescent interlayer technology.
Fire resistant glass must meet the basic standards set out in NCC – 2019 and tested to AS 1530.4:2014, Methods for fire tests on building materials, components and structures. It also has the properties to serve as a firewall.
Cable Coating
Cable Coating is a method used extensively in Passive Fire Protection It helps in preventing flame spread in clustered electrical cables and averts smoke development. The material is thick, eventually requiring a large amount of energy for disintegration. Its strong molecular composition ensures it is strong enough to even withstand an inferno.
The method includes segregation of the entire building through fire resistance rated walls and floors. This minimizes building damage to a great extent, in case a fire breaks out and provides occupants with enough time to stage a quick exit.
Fire Door Components
Fire doors are given a fire-resistance rating, and are usually made of a combination of glass, gypsum, steel, timber and aluminium. They are designed to be kept closed, and any gaps between the wall and the door must be filled with a fire resistant sealant. Some fire doors have windows in them, which can be made from wire mesh glass, liquid sodium silicate, ceramic glass or borosilicate glass. Wired glass is usually fire-resistant, and liquid sodium silicate is primarily used to insulate heat.
If you would like to know more about how fire resistant materials, can affect your fire safety compliance, contact one of our friendly team today..
Yours In Fire Safety
Alex
