30 Sep Fire test conducted in Brazil with the support of ABICHAMA for the evaluation of the use of flame retardants in furniture

Colonel Cajaty, representative of the Fire Department of the Federal District (DF), in Brasilia, conducted a new round of fire tests with support from ABICHAMA to evaluate combustion in relation to materials with flame retardants.

The fire tests were developed to compare the development of the fire in a medium environment, where there was no difference in terms of geometry and ventilation, but only the material existing in the place.  The aim of these experiences was to deepen the knowledge about the influence of the use of flame retardants in the composition of furniture.

Two rooms  of metallic structure and plasterboard were built. An n opening was placed in one wall, representing an open door in a room.

One room contained sofas produced in Brazil (without flame retardants in their composition) and the other room a UK sofa (with flame retardants in the material composition). A high-definition camera was used for recording the burning behavior of each room.

The ignition source in the test was a candle placed horizontally in the left corner of each of the sofas. It was possible to verify the sofa without flame retardant material had a very high temperature increase in all its parts. In the case of the sofa with flame retardants, there was gradual temperature evolution, with a significant difference in the temperature evolution between the left and right sides of the sofa.

In addition, according to the collected data, the environment constituted of materials with flame retardant presented a longer delay to reach maximum values of temperature and heat flux.

The preliminary results were considered satisfactory among all experts and participants and demonstrate that  Bromine based flame retardants play a critical role in reducing the impact of fires on people, property and the environment allowing longer escape times in case of fire as well as allowing longer response time. The data collected will be used for further studies and for the improvement of passive protection measures.

For more information about Abichama and its activities please visit the Japanese website: http://www.abichama.com.br/