COMPARATIVE EXTINGUISHING EFFICIENCY OF HYDROCARBON AND FLUORINATED FOAMING AGENTS

Fire extinguishing efficiency of foam, produced from process solution of hydrocarbon and fluor containing foaming agent is reviewed. Superiority of film forming foaming agent with regard to such parameters of fire extinguishing as fire suppression time and specific flow rate is shown. Problem of fire suppression with multi-component foaming agents is shown. Experimental study to suppress hydrocarbon flame with foam, obtained from the solutions of surface active substances with various ratios of spreading coefficient was conducted. Experimental method to determine type of foam forming agent depending on superficial and interfacial tension of foam forming agent aqueous solutions isotherm values obtained on the border of air and hydrocarbon is reviewed. Spreading coefficients on which capability of foam forming agent solutions to form aqueous film on hydrocarbon surface depends which, in its turn, affects contact stability of foam on hydrocarbon burning surface is reviewed. Effect of model tank structure with the ability to circulate water in the interwall space on reproducibility of heptane flame extinguishing results is discussed. Results of extinguishing, conducted with the solutions of hydrocarbon and fluor containing foam forming agent, are shown graphically. Also there are shown curves, illustrating dependence of specific flow of foam forming agent, used for extinguishing a unit of heptane surface as well as curves describing characteristics of foam forming agent specimens used.