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Author
Blake, D. | Marker, T. | Hill, R. | Reinhardt, J. | Sarkos, C.
Title
Cargo Compartment Fire Protection in Large Commercial Transport Aircraft.
Coporate
William J. Hughes Technical Center, Atlantic City International Airport, NJ
Sponsor
Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, DC
Report
DOT/FAA/AR-TN98/32; Tecnical Note, July 1998, 25 p.
Distribution
AVAILABLE FROM: Federal Aviation Administration William J. Hughes Technical Center's Fire Safety Section's Full-Text technical reports page (in Adobe Acrobat portable document format [PDF]): http//www.fire.tc.faa.gov/reports/report.stm AVAILABLE FROM National Technical Information Service (NTIS), Technology Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce, Springfield, VA 22161. Telephone: 1-800-553-6847 or 703-605-6000; Fax: 703-605-6900. Website: http://www.ntis.gov
Book or Conf
Fire Suppression and Detection Research Application Symposium. Research and Practice: Bridging the Gap. Proceedings. National Fire Protection Research Foundation. February 25-27, 1998, Orlando, FL, 117-133 p., 1998
Keywords
commercial aircraft | transport aircraft | cargo space | compartments | fire protection | aircraft safety | halon 1301 | halon alternatives | halons | fire suppression | water mist
Identifiers
hydrofluorocarbon; aerosol cans
Abstract
This repord describes recent research by the Federal Aviation Administrations (FAA) related to cargo compartment fire protection in large transport aircraft. A gaseous hydrofluorocarbon, HFC-125, was compared to Halon 1301 in terms of fire suppression effectiveness and agent decomposition levels in the cargo compartment and passenger cabin during full-scale tests involving a bulk-loaded cargo fire. Also, a zoned water mist system was designed and evaluated against a bulk-loaded cargo fire. An exploding aerosol can simulator is being developed to provide a repeatable fire threat for evaluation of new halon replacement agents. The potential severity of an exploding aerosol can inside a cargo compartment and the effectiveness of Halon 1301 inerting was demonstrated. Tests were also conducted to determine the effectiveness of Halon 1301 against a cargo fire involving oxygen canisters. Finally, HFC-125 was evaluated for use as a simulant for Halon 1301 during cargo compartment approval testing to demonstrate compliance with applicable FAA regulations.