KR20030025906A - Apparatus and method for suppressing fires - Google Patents

Abstract

The fire suppression apparatus comprises a spherical or cylindrical reservoir 11 with a rounded tip, which contains a liquid such as water in the inner chamber 25 and is housed by being covered with caps or covers 26 and 27. , 20). The gas generator 22 is also in the chamber 25 and includes a stable combustion material 21 that can be ignited by the igniter 26 actuated by the sensor 28. The gas generated by the combustion of the material 21 leaves the water out of the nozzles 19 and 20 to form a fine water droplet of about 50 μm without generating a high pressure in the chamber 25. The combustion time of the gas generator material is between 15 and 20 seconds, during which time water fog will be present in the enclosed space and moved to the flame by atmospheric flow within this environment.

Description

Fire suppression apparatus and method {APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR SUPPRESSING FIRES}

There are two important physical effects used to extinguish a fire, mainly by blocking oxygen and cooling the combustion material below the ignition temperature. Most fire extinguishers operate on the principle of blocking corals. In order to block oxygen, fire is extinguished by blocking the flame with a fire in the form of powder, liquid or foam to prevent combustion.

If a fire requires a significant amount of extinguishing material to be used to stop combustion and cool the combustion material below the ignition temperature, this often results in serious damage to the property to be protected from fire. When water hoses are used, the damage caused by the considerable amount of water pumped into the flames in the building is almost the same as that caused by fire.

It is known to extinguish a fire before a lot of fires by providing a so-called fire extinguisher by recognizing that a fire has occurred in order to put a fire and solve the above-mentioned problems. These fire extinguishers are classified into three cases:

1. To generate a propulsion gas (or stored compressed gas) when manually operated using a lever or other device to rupture a valve or to rupture something like a broken reservoir or built-in bulb. A water-jet fire extinguisher consisting of a circular reservoir that stores physical or chemical means. This is water coming out of the container by the user. The theory is that water cools the combustion material, partly heat is transferred to the water to increase the boiling point, partly evaporates the water, and steam replaces the air to fight the fire.

2. Powdered fire extinguisher consisting of a fire retardant reservoir which is exploded by the operating device from the container and applied to occupational flames by the user. These fire retardants mainly serve to block oxygen in the flame.

3. A gas fire extinguisher that extinguishes a fire by blocking oxygen by acting directly on a gas whose flame is heavier than air.

Fire extinguishers of type 2 and 3 represent fires involving electrical devices, such as those associated with the risk of electrocution, especially if the use of a waterjet fire extinguisher is still active (connected to the main network) during the fire. All the fire extinguishers described above have the disadvantage that they need to be increased regularly to maintain high pressure in the container. Another disadvantage is that the fire in the building is operated manually only when detected by humans. However, fires often occur when a person sleeps or is not in the room, and the fires may be enough to stop the fire.

Various efforts have been made to create automatic fire suppression devices that work without humans. One such fire extinguisher is known in US Pat. No. 3,773,111 with a circular reservoir filled with powder and a nozzle at its end. The plunger or piston slides in the cylindrical reservoir under the action of a flame-type propellant that acts in a fire and quickly transfers the powder through the nozzle. High pressures are generated in the reservoir during operation and must be strong enough to withstand these pressures without breaking. Another fire or explosion suppression is known from EP 0 693 303. It is also a cylindrical reservoir with a nozzle at one end and a propulsion at the other. The cylinder has been described as having dry powder or water available, but is filled with fire fighting or extinguishing media. The pressure generator operates to rapidly increase the pressure in the vessel up to very high pressures (1200 psi (8.27 MPa)) when operated and the rate of ascent is in 500 psi / ms (3.45 MPa / ms) units. The device operates to release all packages from the device in less than 70 ms. U.S. Patent 5 244 550 discloses another fire suppression or explosion protection system that allows a detoning cord or explosive fuse to ignite to quickly generate gas to quickly release the fire extinguishing material from the reservoir.

All these devices require high pressure vessels to withstand the forces generated during use and are focused on fast response. Focused on specific fires, such as fires in the engine parts of an automobile or indoor cooking utensils that can be placed near the place where the fire occurred, necessary to combat a specific environment where a fire is expected or anticipated or anticipated. Because.

On the other hand, the present invention relates to a device which is unpredictable in the main environment in which a fire can occur and which can immediately extinguish a fire. This is especially true in individual spaces such as kitchens, living rooms, lounges with furniture, carpets, curtains, etc., which can be burned out. No existing self-extinguishing fire extinguishers currently exist can automatically protect this environment.

The present invention relates to a device for extinguishing a fire and to a method for extinguishing a fire in a protected environment so that a person can escape without inhaling a high temperature combustion material that can cause serious injury and death in a fire.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a device embodying the principles of the present invention.

2 is a side view of a nozzle suitable for use with the apparatus of FIG. 1.

* Code Description *

11: reservoir 12: upright protrusion

14 Bracket 15,16 Screw

17,18: groove 19,20: nozzle

22: storage 24, 25: opening

26: igniter 27: battery

28 sensor 30 body

The present invention is an improved fire extinguisher that can be placed in a conventional indoor location and protects the entire interior, and does not lose the pressure of the propellant to the liquid medium stored in the device, and can release the medium for extinguishing the fire in the fog state when it is activated. It is an object to provide a device.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the apparatus for extinguishing fire comprises at least one low pressure spray nozzle connected to the inside of the reservoir, a reservoir for liquid fire extinguishing material, and a device for generating propellant gas in the reservoir. Maintain the interior of the reservoir at a superatmospheric pressure sufficient to allow the quenching liquid to be sprayed as it passes through the nozzle for a time sufficient to release the contents.

Using a low pressure spray nozzle, it is possible to generate a fire suppression fog without generating a high pressure in the reservoir. Therefore, a reservoir that does not have to withstand high pressures is available, and a pressure of 150 psi at its connection is a great force for spraying liquid fire fighting materials and sprays the suppression fog.

The means for generating the propellant gas consists of a combustible, non-explosive fuel that burns without the need for oxygen in the atmosphere. Such materials can be sufficiently burned for a few seconds, preferably 10 to 20 seconds.

The present invention relates to the concept of providing an opportunity for a person to inhale hot combustion materials or toxic gases in an enclosed space and to exit the enclosed space without causing injury. Mist of fire fighting materials is generated, especially if it is water, the atmosphere is cooled by Joule effect to lower the temperature of sprayed water below the atmospheric temperature. Simultaneously controlling the size of the water droplets, sprayed droplets of a significant amount of liquid for fire suppression so that the spray nozzle stays in the air for a considerable amount of time, such as 3 to 15 seconds, with a spray nozzle of 100 μm or less, preferably 25 μm to 75 μm Making is preferred. In fact, water droplets of 100 μm drop at 2 meters, about 3 seconds, 50 μm about 30 seconds, and 10 μm about 10 minutes. Water droplets are in the range of 50 µm in size, and the generated mist is in the atmosphere, which may affect the movement of the atmosphere. Fires that occur indoors, in confined spaces such as trains, airplanes, or passenger compartments of cars, allow the atmosphere to circulate. Therefore, irrespective of the exact point at which the fire was issued, the sprayed water droplets from the fire suppression device can be transported downward by atmospheric flow, partially absorbing the low temperature and heat of the water droplets and evaporating towards the source of the fire. It moves to cool and blocks oxygen at the same time. The entire environment is filled with water droplets to suppress the generation of hot combustion materials and create an environment where people can sound alarms, call firefighters or use fire extinguishers. Therefore, even if the fog generated by the fire suppression body of the present invention does not completely extinguish the fire, it gives a sufficient time for a person to escape or a sufficient time to extinguish the fire.

Therefore, air flow from the fire is used to transfer the sprayed droplets of the fire suppression liquid from the fire suppression apparatus to the flame, so that the droplets do not have to be exploded from the apparatus, but due to the nature of the particles to be separated from each other, Maintain speed enough to escape. The fog thus formed forms a wave front that is colder than the meat being transported to the air in the flames. Although the heat of the fire evaporates the fog as it approaches the flame, this cold side must be supplied from above due to the sprayed droplets from the device for a period of time. It is typically contemplated that the gas generator will continue to generate propellant gas for 15 to 20 seconds slightly shorter than the time needed to release the entire liquid fire suppressant from the reservoir. The pressure remaining in the reservoir will release the remaining liquid or directly eject the gas from the combustion state without generating another pressure.

While one spray nozzle has been provided, it is within the scope of the present invention to provide an apparatus with several low pressure nozzles which are in and through the interior of the reservoir. It does not matter whether the nozzles deliver the sprayed droplets of the fire suppression liquid in the other direction or in the same direction.When the droplets are ejected from the device, the droplets are transported to the flames by atmospheric flow into the room rather than by the kinetic energy of the droplets. Because.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the nozzle is mounted under the reservoir and covered with a cover or cap so that it can be depressed at increased pressure when the propellant is issued. There is actually some gas under the cap that is compressed to the working pressure of the liquid to blow off the cap. This provides another benefit, especially when installed in a cap, cover or reservoir, with an outer surface that is flush with the outer surface of the reservoir, making the device easy to use in environments where fire safety devices are impeded. For example, a subway-like environment is not yet equipped with a small fire extinguisher, because of the problem of operating a fire extinguisher even when there is no fire. This leads to the cost of recharging and replacing the fire extinguishers and withdrawing the device in such an environment. However, it is not necessary to damage and use the fire suppression apparatus due to the apparatus of the present invention which is operated by condensation due to the fire rather than being operated manually or mechanically in place. In addition, since the cap or cover is opened with the propulsion gas pressure, the above point can be improved because the surface of the fire suppression apparatus can be painted to hide the correct position of the nozzle. Typically the cap or cover snaps to the opening of the reservoir.

A cylindrical shape with a rounded end may be used, but certain conventional shapes of the reservoir are circular. In a train or in an environment that can be destroyed, tetrahedrons can be used to fit the device into the corners of the carriage and have a flat surface towards the carriage in such a way that it does not reveal that the carriage is present.

As described above, the gas generator is ignited with an electronic or electric ignition device that includes a heating sensor to burn the gas generator when the atmosphere is above a threshold. The ignition device includes a device that detects the rate of change of atmospheric temperature working with the heating sensor to combust the gas generator if the rate of temperature increase exceeds a predetermined rate or the absolute temperature exceeds a predetermined threshold for a predetermined time interval.

As the reservoir must withstand high pressure it is formed into a low pressure plastic container. The use of plastic material has particular advantages because it is light and the spray nozzle can be integrated into the body of the reservoir.

The invention also relates to a method for extinguishing and extinguishing a fire in an enclosed environment, in which the mist size of most sprayed droplets is below 100 μm, preferably between 25 μm and 75 μm, and with air flow from the fire. Allow sprayed droplets to be transferred to the flame.

The water in which the sprayed droplets are formed contains a fire retardant which provides an improved fire suppression effect.

One embodiment of the present invention will be described by way of example with reference to the drawings.

The illustrated arrangement consists of a circular reservoir 11 of low pressure plastic that can hold 3 liters of water. About 20cm in diameter, about the same size as a small football ball, is enough. The reservoir has two upright projections 12, 13 to hang on a bracket 14 that can be secured to the wall with screws 15, 16 or fixing pins as shown.

With a capacity of up to 3 liters of water, the reservoir weighs about 3½ and must be securely fixed. In this way the device will operate to suppress the waste paper and it is important that the reservoir be mounted high, preferably close to the ceiling. However, the ceiling structure is very weak and the location of the rafters and beams is not enough to suspend the device on the front window. The L-shaped bracket, indicated by reference numeral 14 in the figures, is therefore preferred because it fixes the device to the wall rather than the ceiling, but should nevertheless be at the ceiling height level.

In the wall the reservoir 11 consists of two grooves 17, 18 and comprises a relatively low pressure spray nozzle 19, 20. The nozzle is not a pin collision but a line collision so that the liquid can be sprayed correctly through an extended contact line, which can be a helical form. Each nozzle is shown, suitably molded integrally in the reservoir 11. Nozzles of this nature have the advantage of being robust and will produce tiny droplets of sprayed water even with low impact. It is important for the nozzle to produce a large amount of sprayed droplets at about 50 μm at the operating pressure generated by the propulsion gas, which will be described in detail below. Consideration is given to the time taken from the ceiling height to the floor for about 30 seconds, which is sufficient for the entire room to be delivered to suppress the fire by generating droplets in this size range. For this purpose, the nozzles 19 and 20 do not need to supply sufficient kinetic energy to the droplets to send the water away, but are enough to fall near the nozzles and do not need a high pressure propulsion device.

FIG. 2 shows the nozzle shown with a nozzle 19 having a body 30 of a threaded region 31 for screwing the nozzle in the open state of the wall of the reservoir 11 and most of the particles of about 50 μm. An enlarged view of a forwardly projecting helical impact spray member 32 that sprays a spray liquid exiting an orifice (not shown) in body 30 having a very fine aerosol. The helical input line maintains a high delivery rate even at the aforementioned fine spray rate.

The high-pressure propulsion gas is produced as a combustion material produced by the Atlantic Research Company under the name "Arcite" which can be burned in a closed environment without supplying oxygen from the outside. The material is also stable to ride slowly and is safe to remain indoors for a long time without the risk of ignition.

Combustion material 21 is housed in a reservoir 22 made of metal or ceramic casting with openings 23 and 24 such that the gas is burned and exited into the inner chamber 25 of the reservoir 11. These openings 23, 24 open towards the inner chamber and liquid enters the case 22. When the material 21 is combusted to generate a suitable pressure, the liquid in the case 22 is discharged into the interior 25 of the reservoir 11 together with the generated gas. The combustible material 21 can ignite even in the presence of water and combustion is not affected by water.

Combustion of the material 21 is ignited by an electronic igniter 26 which is operated by a battery 27 which supplies a heating sensor 28 which generates an output signal which activates the igniter 26. The processor 29, which includes a battery circuit and a timer, is connected to the sensor 28 and the igniter 26, and the slowly changing temperature, which is unlikely to indicate a short time anomalous temperature change or fire, may cause the igniter 26 to fail. It is programmed to determine the absolute temperature and the rate of rise of the temperature so that it is not operated.

The igniter 25 of the vessel 11 is filled with water which completely immerses the gas generator 22 in the absence of air.

For the recesses 17 and 18 housing the nozzles 19 and 20 there are covers 26 and 27 which are snaps which are connected to the recesses 17 and 18 respectively and the outer surface is a reservoir 11. ) Is the same height as the outer surface. These covers 26 and 27 cannot be removed manually from the recesses 17 and 18 because each has no point of purchase to move the cap or cover from its position.

The device of the present invention therefore consists of a self storage low pressure device which produces a water fog during operation. The sprayed water droplets of the water mist are sized to remain sprayed for a long time, and the gas generator is preferred without generating high pressure so that the water in the chamber 25 is made of the low pressure plastic material of the vessel 11. It works to produce gas for a long time so that it is released slowly around 15 to 20 seconds. The propellant is burned to produce water, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide, not poison gas, and when the water is released, excess water in the container escapes through the nozzle and helps spray the sprayed droplets towards the flame.

The fire suppression method using low energy water fog not only acts as a heat shield between the flame and the interior space, but also absorbs the radiated heat and slows the convection flow by lowering the temperature of the flame. This prevents the flame from moving from one combustion material to another by radiated heat. Cold droplets can be inhaled by a person indoors without injury. The fire retardant may be included in the liquid or suspension state in the water in the chamber 25, which has the advantage of providing smoke cleaning in absorbing the smoke particles in the sprayed droplets. This has the advantage that human lungs can inhale water rather than smoke particles.

In addition, since a relatively small volume of water is used to generate fog, indoors and furniture are less damaged than when using a fire extinguisher such as a conventional sprinkler.

Separate fire suppression devices have been described above, where multiple devices can be connected to each other to protect a wider area, and when the control sensor detects a fire, it can work in conjunction with each other or individually.

In another application, the device may be used as a safety device by placing pigments in the liquid in chamber 25, or may be connected to and operate with an intruder detector such as an infrared detector. Pigments may be those that can only appear in ultraviolet light. If the intruder enters the room, when the alarm is set, the device of the present invention generates a fine mist that wets the intruder's skin, clothing or belongings so that chips and stolen items can be identified later.

Although the gas generating system in the protective casing 22 is shown above in the reservoir 11 in the above-described embodiment, it may be in other positions, such as between the nozzles 19, 20 or above and below. It may also be freely placed in the room away from the inner wall as long as it is connected by wires from the sensor 29 to operate, and the replaceable battery should be positioned differently.

Claims (15)

A fire suppression device consisting of a reservoir having a material for extinguishing a liquid fire includes at least one low pressure spray nozzle which is connected to the inside of another reservoir, and a device for generating propellant gas in the reservoir to attract the inside of the reservoir to superatmospheric pressure. Wherein the superatmospheric pressure is sufficient to allow the fire fighting liquid to be sprayed through the nozzle for a time sufficient to release the contents of the reservoir. The device of claim 1, wherein the device for generating propellant gas is comprised of a combustible, non-explosive fuel material that burns without oxygen in the atmosphere for several seconds. 3. Apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that sprayed droplets of the fire suppression liquid are produced with a spray nozzle size of 100 m or less, preferably between 25 [mu] m and 75 [mu] m. The device of claim 1, wherein there are a plurality of low pressure nozzles in and through the reservoir. The device of claim 1, wherein the nozzle is mounted in a recess below the surface of the reservoir and is covered with a cap or cover coupled to the reservoir to move to the working pressure of the fluid ejected from the nozzle by the propellant gas. . 6. The device of claim 5, wherein the cap or cover has an outer surface that is flush with the outer surface of the reservoir when installed in the reservoir. 7. A device according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the cap or cover is snapped at each opening in the reservoir. The device of claim 1, wherein the reservoir is spherical. 9. Apparatus according to claim 2 to 8, characterized in that the combustion of the gas generator begins with an electronic or electric ignition device. 10. The device of claim 9, wherein the electrical or electronic ignition device comprises a heating sensor operative to combust the gas generator when the ambient temperature rises above a threshold. 11. The ignition device according to claim 10, wherein the ignition device changes the rate of change of the atmospheric temperature operating with the heating sensor for burning the gas generator when the rate of temperature rise exceeds a predetermined rate or when the absolute temperature exceeds a predetermined threshold for a predetermined time interval. And means for sensing. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the reservoir is a low pressure plastic container. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each low pressure spray nozzle is integrated into a body of a reservoir. This method of extinguishing or extinguishing a fire in an enclosed environment generates sprayed water mist of size less than 100 μm, preferably between 25 μm and 75 μm, and the sprayed droplets are generated in a confined space due to the fire. Characterized in that it is transported to the flame side with atmospheric flow. 15. The method of claim 14 wherein the sprayed droplets consist of fire retardant.