| Abstract: |
Cup burners have been extensively used as a fire suppression efficiency screening tool for gaseous halon alternatives. In the search for alternatives to halons in fire suppression, it is likely that several types of condensed-phase compounds will be identified which may be delivered in droplet or aerosol form. Although cup burners have been used for evaluating condensed-phase agents (e.g., sodium bicarbonate powder), currently there is no apparatus designed specifically for screening liquid agents under well-controlled experimental conditions. The objective of this work is to design, construct and demonstrate a bench-scale device capable of screening the fire suppression efficiency of liquid agents. The design of the apparatus is based on a well-characterized flame, a means to facilitate the introduction of liquid agents, and a way to generate liquid droplets. These individual components will be described in detail in the following sections. Since the project is on-going, its current status will be discussed, and some encouraging preliminary results will be presented. |
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