• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.117-123
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• 2017

This study was intended to find methods of fire extinguishing system designs that can improve the equipment's usability. In this study, the fire suppression experiment through fire extinguishers and the data drawn through the experiment were analyzed, and then the guideline for the improvement of designs was presented. The procedure is as follows. A fire suppression experiment with the use of fire extinguishers was done by 43 average adults. The whole process of the fire suppression was videotaped, and then captured major scenes were analyzed with the use of RULA, a human engineering measurement tool. The analyzed data were divided into 4 steps, and then the guideline for design improvement was presented. The summary of the study is as follows. Step 1, Fire extinguisher distance step. To reduce overload occurring at the process of holding fire extinguishers suddenly, wheels are attached to the body of extinguishers, or pedestals are installed. Step 2, Fire extinguisher transportation step. The length of hose is extended, or fire fighting water is sprayed far, so that overload of legs occurring at the process of travel can be reduced. In addition, the weight of fire extinguisher shouldn't be over 2 kg. Step 3, Safety pin removal stage. Safety pins should be applied with button type, so that excessive posture of lower limbs and excessive twisting of wrists won't happen during safety pin removal process. Besides, safety pins should be designed for easy identification and operation. Step 4, Fire extinguishing agent spraying step. To reduce overload occurring at sudden spraying of fire fighting water, pressure should be increased gradually until high pressure. With the above study results applied to existing fire extinguisher design, it may contribute to reducing any fire damage.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2008

Carbon dioxide($CO_2$) agent, which has more safely extinguished fire than any other gaseous fire extinguishing agents, has been widely used in various protected enclosures and types of fires. According to the concept of performance-based design(PBD). $CO_2$ extinguishing system to be designed is needed to be evaluated for the performance of fire suppression with possible fire scenarios in an enclosure. In this paper, CFD simulations were carried out to study the effects of opening area on the performance of $CO_2$ extinguishing system and the flow characteristics in the machine room of $100m^3$ in which kerosene spill fire happened. This study showed that time of fire suppression increased linearly in proportion to the size of opening area, and fires for each model were completely suppressed prior to the end of discharge of $CO_2$ agent. It was shown that mass flow rate through opening was influenced by the combined effects of heat release rate of fire and discharge of $CO_2$ agent. After $CO_2$ agent was completely discharged, oxygen concentrations in enclosures for each model were lower than the limit concentration of combustion.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.103-110
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• 2016

While the demand for the gas system fire extinguishers increases every year, there are insufficient safety measures for assessing the extinguishing performance, such as system safety and reliability in the preparation of increasing demand, which has emerged as a social problem. One of the most critical causes of accidents occurring with the gas extinguishing system is pressure leakage from the extinguishing agent storage container. This is considered to be one of the critical factors on which the success of fire suppression depends. In this study, its safety measure was studied, Because it was deemed urgently necessary. The newly developed pressure leakage monitoring system is a system monitoring storage condition, pressure, leakage and discharge of the storage container related to agent concentration, which is one of the critical factors for fire suppression. This was developed to be applicable to the $CO_2$ and HFC-23 systems. Therefore, for structural safety analysis, the safety performance was verified by the fluid structure coupling analysis of the safety problems that may occur when the pressure leakage monitoring system is applied to the gas fire extinguisher. For analysis programs, the FloEFD program from Mentor Graphics was used for computational fluid dynamics analysis and ABAQUS from Dassault Systems was used for structural analysis. From the result of numerical analysis, the structure of $CO_2$ did not develop plastic deformation and its safety was verified. However, plastic deformation and deviation issue occurred with the HFC-23 monitoring system and therefore verified the structural safety of pressure leakage monitoring system by data obtained from redesigning and adjusting the condition of numerical interpretation three times.

• Proceedings of the Korea Institute of Fire Science and Engineering Conference
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• 2007.04a
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• pp.141-145
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• 2007

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.1-6
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• 2012

There are specific indications about additional gas for the unencloseable openings of the carbon dioxide extinguishing systems. But there are no indications for other gas extinguishing systems including clean agent extinguishing systems only have the principle when it need, apply it. Therefore, this study suggested applying the equation of additional gas for the unencloseable openings of the carbon dioxide to all of the other fire suppression gas that we are use.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.23-28
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• 2013

In order to improve extinguishing performance of water mist, many studies of additives have been conducted. In this study, viscosity agent which has the ability to improve extinguishing performance by adhering to the surface on fire was used and fluorine-free surfactant was also added to water to enhance water's wetting ability. This study aimed to verify optimal concentration of extinguishing of additives according to fire source and extinguishing performance by comparison with pure water. In case of wood crib fire, the results show that flame suppression and extinguishing time of sodium alginate 0.4 wt.% are 3.4 times and 2.2 times shorter than those of pure water in 0.2 MPa respectively. It seems that large amount of water adhere to surface on fire, thus cooling effect on surface was enhanced. Also water consumption of sodium alginate 0.4wt.% is up to 65% lower than that of pure water. In case of heptane fire, extinguishing time of cocobetaine 0.1 wt.% is 9.7 times shorter than that of pure water in 0.2 MPa. It is thought that because cocobetaine can block oxygen and suppress oil mist by making emulsion film on fire surface due to a low surface tension. On the other hand, water consumption of cocobetaine 0.1 wt.% is 92% lower than that of pure water.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.603-607
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• 2023

Aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) is a critical fire suppression agent used in combating hydrocarbon fires. This type of fire suppressant is highly effective due to its ability to form a protective film, dissipate heat, inhibit combustion, and utilize a blend of chemical substances to extinguish fires. While these properties offer significant advantages in responding to hydrocarbon fires, AFFF is distinct in its deployment as it is dispensed in the form of foam. Therefore, the rheological analysis of AFFF foam using a rheometer plays a crucial role in predicting the spray characteristics of AFFF for combating hydrocarbon fires, and this is closely associated with effective fire suppression. In this study, we conducted rheometer experiments to confirm the non-Newtonian behavior (shear-thinning) of AFFF foam and obtained data on the form's stability. These experimental data are expected to contribute to enhancing the efficiency of fire suppression systems utilizing AFFF.

• Proceedings of the Korea Institute of Fire Science and Engineering Conference
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• 2002.05a
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• pp.21-29
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• 2002

With regard to the personnel safety and other safety when the gas suppressants are discharged into the area where occupants exist, the short term and long term effects to the health of people are discussed mainly with the Carbon dioxide agent and Halon Replacement agents system. To gain the benefits of CO2 extinguishing systems while minimizing risk to people serious attention must be given to personnel safety in the design, installation, and maintenance of CO2 systems. Training of personnel is essential. A major factor in the use of a clean agent fire suppressant in a normally occupied area is toxicity. While all halocarbon agents are tested for long-term health hazards, the primary endpoint is acute or short-term exposure, The primary acute toxicity effects of the halocarbon agents described here are anesthesia and cardiac sensitization. For inert gases, the primary physiological concern is reduced oxygen concentration.

• Proceedings of the Korea Institute of Fire Science and Engineering Conference
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• 1997.11a
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• pp.598-605
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• 1997

In recent years, the number of vehicle fires, as well as the number of motor vehicles, has been increasing rapidly. Therefore, several types of automatic fire suppression systems for the engine compartment of automobiles have been developed to extinguish automobile fires, and most of these systems use halon 1301 as a fire extinguishing agent. Due to environmental concerns, the phase-out of halons has been announced, so now there is a need to replace halon 1301. For this, a 1,1,1,2,3,3,3-heptaflouropropane (HFC-227ea, FM-$200^{TM}$) gas-filled Aqueous Film- Forming foam (known as AFFF) extinguisher was devised even though air foam extinguishers could be used. This is because the air in the foam bubbles is a source of oxygen required for the combustion reaction. It can be surmised that it is possible to increase the fire extinguishing efficiency of AFFF by filling in foam bubbles with a gaseous extinguishing agent. The best choice is the FM-$200^{TM}$ gas-filled AFFF, Which has the maximum expansion ratio of 62:1. This makes it possible for the expanded foam to rapidly fill the engine compartment.

• Journal of the Korea Safety Management & Science
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.117-124
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• 2022

This study collected powder extinguishers with 6-10 years of elapsed life from January 2012 to January 2017 in market, factory, and apartment areas to experiment with changes in fineness and to examine the characteristics of extinguishing power. First, in the case of ABC powder, 98.3 wt% of the 8-year market area and 98.6 wt% of the 10-year apartment complex were found to be inappropriate in the first, second, and third arithmetic average analysis of the powder extinguisher from 6 to 10 years. That is, the fine distribution and size of the powder extinguishing agent particles should be managed within an appropriate range. It is analyzed that the powder fire extinguisher may experience a change in the fineness of the powder depending on the external environment exposure, placement, management status, and age of use, resulting in a decrease in digestive power or inability to radiate. Second, the fire extinguisher cannot be used in the initial fire suppression depending on the place of deployment, the environment of deployment, the progress of the number of years of use, and maintenance, so it is necessary to strengthen the device that enables fire extinguisher maintenance and inspection. Third, in the manufacturing process, the charging method should also be reviewed in consideration of the conditions of the workplace, the humid season, and the rainy environment.