Unifire Presents at International Water Mist Conference 2016

Unifire Presents at International Water Mist Conference 2016

Unifire AB has been selected to present its FlameRanger technology to the International Water Mist Association (IWMA), held September 21-22 in Vienna, Austria.

Full details of the conference can be found at: https://www.xing-events.com/FGPHCVA.html?page=1370782

Unifire’s FlameRanger™ is a new, fully automatic fire detection and high-volume suppression system which combines its robotic nozzles with Tyco FV300 IR array flame detectors, advanced electronics and software, a web server, and the Unifire InterAct™ graphical user interface.

Applications of the FlameRanger are broad-ranging and include, among others, fire protection of: Tunnels, Aircraft Hangars, Large Volume Spaces on naval vessels and ships, Oil & Gas facilities and storage tanks, Warehouses & Large Indoor & Underground Spaces, Waste-to-Energy Plants, and more.

The following is Unifire’s Abstract for the IWMA 2016 Conference:

A REVOLUTIONARY SUPPLEMENT
TO WATER MIST SYSTEMS:
FULLY AUTOMATIC FIRE DETECTION AND EXTINGUISHING SYSTEMS UTILIZING HIGH VOLUME ROBOTIC NOZZLES

Speakers:

Roger Barrett James
Mattias Eggert
Unifire AB, Kungälv, Sweden

Study & Test Report of U.S. Naval Research Laboratory Conducted by:

Gerard G. Back, Ryan Grantham
Jensen Hughes, Baltimore, Maryland

Hung V. Pham
LT. Timothy Polyard
John P. Farley
Navy Technology Center for Safety and Survivability, Washington, DC

Abstract

Background
A study was conducted on a new solution for rapid firefighting suppression utilizing a fully automatic fire detection and suppression system that combines infrared array flame detectors with robotic nozzles. The system may compliment water mist systems in a variety of applications.

The system was specifically tested for the protection of Large Volume Spaces (LVS). It autonomously detects up to four fires, dynamically triangulates the fire’s (or fires’) three-dimensional coordinates, and guides robotic nozzles to suppress the fire(s) with a large volume of water or foam, directly on the target fire. The system shuts off as soon as flames are no longer detected.

Objective
The objective of the tests was to conduct a preliminary assessment of the ability of automated robotic nozzles to suppress large quantities of Class A materials stowed in LVS.

Method
A series of large-scale tests was conducted in September 2015 onboard the U.S. Navy’s Fire Test Ship ex-USS Shadwell. Tests included large fire suppression of Class A fires with water by the following methods: manual remote control using a joystick; pre-programmed targeting using the system’s record/play feature; fully automatic activation and targeting; and delayed automatic activation and suppression of individual and multiple small fires.

Results
In all test scenarios, from the time suppression commenced, all fires were fully suppressed within a range of several seconds to a maximum of 20 seconds. A large fire test conducted detected and began suppressing the fire within 5 seconds of ignition—so quickly that the firefighting party igniting the heptane pan fires below the stacks of pallets had to run out of the hangar to avoid the suppression system. In another test, running in fully automatic mode with a 3 minute pre burn, the system completely suppressed a large fire consisting of two stacks of wooden pallets within 15 seconds of commencement of suppression; whereas the same test using a human firefighter guiding the robotic nozzle with a joystick took 20 seconds. A test against three small fires was conducted with a one minute preburn period, and the system extinguished all three fires, in order of detection, each having been fully suppressed within several seconds of commencement of suppression.

Conclusions & Recommendations
The results of this investigation demonstrate the potential for using automated monitors for protecting LVS on USN Ships/Platforms, and can be used in a wide variety of large, open spaces typically not suited for water mist systems. Additional testing is recommended to assess the capabilities of this technology in fully loaded, highly cluttered spaces.

Keywords: water mist systems, automatic fire detection and extinguishing using high volume robotic nozzles (monitors), large volume spaces