Gaseous Fire Extinguishing System Types

ADT can provide a number of Gaseous Fire Extinguishing Types.  Two types of system are available that are safe for use in occupied areas. These are known as Halocarbons and Inert Gas.  A third system uses Carbon Dioxide (CO2) which doesn’t have the inherent safety of the other suppression gases.

All the gaseous fire extinguishing systems provided by ADT are defined as Clean Agents. This means that they leave no residue following discharge and that they are electrically non-conductive.

Halocarbon Systems

Halocarbon systems are fast acting chemical agents and provide a safe and fast acting fire extinguishing solution from a relatively small quantity of agent.  Large areas can be protected by strategically placed containers located in a modular fashion throughout the protected area or just outside.  These agents work largely by reducing the heat from the fire at molecular level thus extinguishing the fire. Examples of these are the groundbreaking Sapphire Suppression Systems and FM200.

Inert Gas Systems

Inert Gas systems contain blends of naturally occurring gases that reduce Oxygen levels to the point where a fire will no longer be sustained. The systems, like the halocarbons, are safe for use in occupied areas.

Larger storage areas for containers are required than with the Halocarbons. A number of larger areas can sometimes be protected by a common bank of cylinders which provides savings on the total amount of equipment which would otherwise be required. This is known as a distribution or selector valve system.

CO2

The third type of gaseous system is CO2, the universal extinguishant. This system does not enjoy the safety of the others but can be used in a local application system where the others are unsuitable. In this case to protect, for example, printing press machinery that is not surrounded by an enclosure to retain the gas. Where there are no surrounding walls, ceiling and floor to keep the gas in the protected area, the system is designed on a local application basis as opposed to total flooding for the others.

When CO2 is used in total flooding systems, a series of safety measures are introduced to ensure that the agent does not discharge while people are present.